


Second Chances AKA The Rick One For Me

by HopeTheCrazyCat



Series: Entricked Fates [6]
Category: Rick and Morty
Genre: Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Angst, Character Death, Drama, Eventual Smut, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Abuse, M/M, Trust Issues, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, explicit abuse in later chapters, explicit rape in later chapters
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-07
Updated: 2018-09-01
Packaged: 2019-06-06 19:58:59
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 8
Words: 37,351
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15202349
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HopeTheCrazyCat/pseuds/HopeTheCrazyCat
Summary: Morty A-22β6 didn't have it easy with his Rick. Now full of traumas and a phobia against Ricks, het gets to live with an alternate version of his grandpa. Will this Rick be different and would it be for better or worse?





	1. Graduation and a New Home

**Author's Note:**

> Again, Rick and Morty ain't mine (the credit goes to Justin and Dan), but I shall claim the main Rick- and Morty-sonas of this story as my mental property. Let's all just pretend that that's a thing for one moment… thank you.
> 
>  
> 
> No warnings for this chapter yet, but rating is for later chapters.

  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
**Second Chances AKA The Rick One For Me – Chapter 1: Graduation and a New Home**  
  
  
  


His name was Morty – well, that was every boys' name here in Morty Academy so better said: his name was Morty A-22β6.  
Or, just "Shy Morty" as he had been nicknamed by the other Mortys.  
Now of course, since Mortys were generally shy and anxious this nickname probably seemed to be redundant, yet it was so fitting for him because he put those special attributes on a completely new level.  
His stutter was about ten times worse and that was something you would only notice if the quiet boy would even speak up.  
  
This Morty's timidity was at its worst though when he was around Ricks.  
It was obvious to everyone around that the boy was downright terrified when addressed by his grandfather no matter which version of him.  
As such, uncomfortable situations in the classroom were not rare because every time that the Teacher Rick would ask him something the events went down more or less the same.  
  
"Can you answer the question, _Shy Morty_?" the Rick inquired and towered over the boy from in front of his desk.  
  
The brunet only stared with horrified, wide eyes up at him and his mouth opened and closed to release some stuttered "U-u-uh…"  
  
With a stern expression, the teacher would come even closer and the Morty slid down in his chair, looking like he wanted to hide underneath his desk and probably close to start crying any moment now.  
  
Teacher Rick only sighed and shook his head. "It's gonna be a miracle if you somehow graduate."  
  
Then he went on to pass the question to another Morty in the classroom.  
Shy Morty only looked at his desk like a punished child. His lower lip was quivering slightly.  
Honestly, he wasn't even sure if he wanted to graduate. Graduation meant that he would get to live with a new Rick and that thought was somehow terrifying.  
  
'Maybe…maybe it's not going to be so bad though.' he tried to tell himself.  
  
Everyone figured that the way he acted could be only thanks to his original Rick. Who knew what kinds of shit the crazy scientist had put his grandson through?  
It caused many of the other Mortys to murmur rumors about him yet they all tried to treat him nicely. Mortys were often times enough the victims of bullying already so most of them were above bullying each other.  
As it was, he often stood together in a small circle of Mortys and while he barely ever added anything to their conversations, he overheard many things that they went through and experienced with their Ricks.  
  
Of course, many of the stories sounded abhorrent yet he thought while it certainly sounded bad, it wasn't as horrible as what he had been through with his grandfather.  
Sometimes they even told stories about fun adventure or trips to Blips and Chitz – things that he had never encountered in the past.  
That's why he wanted to believe that getting a new Rick might not be as bad as he feared. If he were lucky, maybe he would get someone that was actually nice and not as much of a monster as his original grandfather was.  
  
After all, this whole thing was a chance that the Council of Ricks graciously gave him.  
He couldn't afford to mess it up or he might face a terrible punishment.  
Being sent to Morty Academy was a decision that was made out of mercy for him and Morty A-22β6 should never forget that – not that he really ever would after everything that he had been through…  
  
  
Eventually the day of graduation came around.  
He sat together in the big auditorium with his fellow classmates, all of them clad in robes and caps instead of the school uniform.  
Looking up at the stage, he could see the line of Ricks that were waiting to pick up their new Mortys.  
Some of them looked half-bored to death or even pissed off. They've probably waited in line for a while already.  
  
Well, it was kind of like "first come, first serve" with the graduation event.

The ones who arrived first got the Mortys with the best degree and the ones who came last got the "leftovers". Simple as that.  
That's why many of the Ricks were naturally on edge, the little patience that they had already used up from having to wait so long in the line.  
  
The ceremony began and Teacher Rick called upon the first Morty. "Morty Smith O-93."  
  
The Morty stood up and went on the stage. The teacher handed him a certificate, also added some praising words, saying that he was valedictorian and that his new Rick could be proud to have him as his Morty.  
Morty O-93 smiled as he took the certificate and then went to his new Rick who grinned down at him, certainly pleased that he got here first.  
  
The duo left the building while the teacher called up the next Morty.  
They obviously were called in the order of how good they did, the best Mortys being the first ones to be called up.  
Morty A-22β6 waited anxiously, his fingers fidgeting nervously in his lap.  
  
More and more time passed and more and more Mortys and Ricks left.  
The shy Morty looked around at the empty seats, noticing that that the auditorium was almost empty. He worried that maybe he hadn't made it.  
Looking left and right nervously, he could see that only Rick aka "Tall Morty" was still seated. Everyone else had already left.  
  
He could feel tears brimming at the corners of his eyes, thinking that this was it and he would get in trouble with the Council now because he hadn't managed to graduate.  
  
"Morty A-22β6." Teacher Rick's voice boomed through the empty hall.  
  
With a gasp, he sprang up from his chair and hurried to the stage. He stumbled on the stairs, but caught himself before he fell and nervously came to stop in front of his teacher.  
  
"I've got to admit that I honestly didn't think you would make it, but here you are." He handed him the certificate that Morty accepted with shaking hands. "Even though it was only barely. Good luck with your new Rick– um, Rick P-78, you little turd."  
  
With those words, he made room so that he could walk towards his new Rick.  
Morty didn't dare to lift his head as he approached the man still clutching the paper tightly in his sweaty hands.  
The only thing of his new Rick that he could see were his brown boots and black slacks with gun holsters attached to them although they were currently empty. He also wore a grey coat instead of the off-white lab coat that most Ricks usually wore and it seemed to be sleeveless.  
He was intriguing and at least optically already different from his original Rick. Hopefully, his personality would also be different.  
  
His new Rick didn't say a word to greet him and Morty was too timid to say something either so they just stood awkwardly in front of each other, the Rick probably looking down at him and Morty looking down at Rick's shoes.  
  
"Graduation's over so get the fuck out of here already." Teacher Rick said and clinked impatiently with his key bundle as he waited at the door for the two to finally leave.  
  
Without any commentary, Rick P-78 went off the stage and Morty followed him.  
As they exited the building, Tall Morty – who didn't make it and hadn't gotten a new Rick – as well as the teacher also left, the latter locking the door behind them.  
  
  
Rick P-78 stopped a cab as soon as they reached the main road and both got in.  
They would have to drive to the central square where the portal zone was. Morty didn't really know anything about the customs on the Citadel, but apparently Ricks weren't allowed to carry their portal guns with them while they visited (or lived here) and were only allowed to use it within the official portal zone.  
  
As the cab drove through the streets, Morty looked out of the window.  
He hadn't seen much of the Citadel. In the time that he had stayed here, he had only ever been at Morty Academy and the only time he had seen any other buildings was when he had been escorted to the school by some Guard Ricks.  
The car stopped and Rick paid the driver before they got out.  
  
There were at the main atrium now that was full of live with bustling Ricks and Mortys as usual.  
Morty somewhat recognized the plaza that they were at from the time that he was brought to the Citadel. He had been led by two Guard Ricks to the big building in which the Council of Ricks resided in.  
His hands had been cuffed back then and he was treated like a criminal. Well, truthfully speaking, he was…  
  
"C'mon. We've got to pick up my stuff first." His new Rick spoke to him for the first time.  
  
They went over to a small building where they had to wait in line for a bit.  
As it finally was their turn, Rick filled out the formula that he was handed and then got his portal gun as well as his other weapons back.  
While he strapped his handguns in the holsters, Morty dared to look up at Rick P-78 for the first time.  
  
He wore a black long-sleeved turtleneck shirt instead of the typical blue sweater, but that wasn't what the boy focused on.  
Rick's left eye was in an unnaturally bright blue color. It looked like it might even glow in the dark.  
Morty had no doubt that it was artificial and most likely a cybernetic upgrade.  
  
He wondered if Rick had purposely replaced his eye though or if it had to do with some kind of accident.  
After all, over the eye was a long vertical scar. It went all the way from above his eyebrow down to his cheek.  
  
That scar and eye made Rick P-78 look scary and Morty felt terrified again, worrying that he got a bad pick.  
Was this guy going to be like his grandfather had been?  
Morty squeaked as Rick suddenly looked at him, obviously noticing that the boy had been starring at him.  
  
"C'mon. Let's go home." He only said and pulled out his portal gun to open a portal in the designated zone.  
  
Morty rubbed nervously over the long sleeves of his robe, but followed him obediently.  
They arrived in a familiar garage and the boy felt heavy lumps of dread settle in his stomach. He didn't like this place. Too many memories…  
  
He vaguely noticed while it looked distantly the same to the one he knew from his home dimension there were some subtle differences. Even if it was only some gadgets that rested on the shelves that looked different from the ones that his grandfather had owned.  
  
"If you want you can go to your room or whatever. I don't need your help right now." Rick said and gestured to the door. "It-it should be the same as the room you had in your home dimension."  
  
Morty took the hint that Rick wanted him to leave so that he could work in peace without getting bothered and went into the house.  
The first room that he came to was obviously the kitchen as it was connected to the garage.  
  
He looked around. It was familiar. The same one that he knew from his home, but something was different.  
However, he couldn't tell what it was.  
The place was clean, but he did notice a fine sheen of dust that had settled on some of the countertops as if it had been a while since someone had prepared food here.  
  
He left the kitchen through the door that led into the dining room.  
This room looked equally untouched.  
With furrowed brows, he then entered the parlor.  
No one was here and the TV wasn't on.  
  
From looking outside and checking one of the clocks, he could see that it was late afternoon already. Usually someone should have been home at this time.  
That was when it finally struck him what seemed so off about the house.  
Even though everything was still in place and where it should be – the picture frames, the furniture, all the decorative items – it was too silent, it felt empty… lifeless.  
  
It made him wonder, where the rest of the family was.  
Did Rick actually live here alone? For how long was "his" family gone?  
It certainly had the feel that it had been some time.  
  
Morty went into the hallway and looked towards the small corridor underneath the steps.  
There was also no sound coming from over there and the boy didn't really feel the need to check if it was the same in those rooms. If it was really exactly like his own home then only Jerry's man cave, Rick's room and the first floor bathroom were there and he certainly wouldn't dare to even consider snooping around in Rick's room.  
So, instead he opted to walk up the stairs.  
  
Out of curiosity, he did check Summer's room after his ascend, but this one also felt as lifeless as all the other rooms even if her stuff was still all there.  
Ignoring the urge to peek inside his parents' bedroom to see the same weird "emptiness", he went past that door and came to a stop at the last one.  
This one lead to "his" room.  
  
He opened the door and slowly stepped inside.  
It looked exactly like he remembered it.  
The round rug with a motif of the solar system, the posters on the walls as well as the green flag with "Science" written on it.  
It all looked the same and even though it wasn't his room per say, it still radiated the love that he had for science.  
  
Ever since he was just a little child, he had a fascination for science and everything that had to do with sci-fi. And he could still remember how elated he had been when his grandfather had come into his life. The man was a scientist who had adventures in outer space and build machinery that was beyond imagining.  
  
To Morty, his Grandpa Rick had been the embodiment of everything that he associated with science.  
That was also the reason why he had been drawn to the old man like an insect that was lured by the sweet scent of a Venus Fly Trap before it was helplessly caught in its maws where it struggled in vain and then was slowly being digested.  
  
Morty trudged more into the room, his hand gliding over the surface of his desk, which was also slightly covered in dust – the same desk on which he used to do his homework. He looked at his shelves, inspecting all of his action figures and collectibles that still were all accounted for and stood in their proper place.  
It felt like it had been so long that he had seen his room. When was the last time that he had been in here?  
  
Lastly, he went over to his bed.  
He first sat gently down on it as if he was afraid that it was only an illusion and not really there. After feeling the familiar soft mattress dipping under his weight, he threw himself into his pillow.  
He didn't remember when the last time was that he actually got to sleep in his bed.  
  
When Rick came to live with them, he would interrupt Morty's sleep to drag him out of this very bed in the middle of the night. At least that was what he had been doing in the beginning.  
At some point, he didn't even let Morty go to his room anymore.  
Rick forced him to drop out of school and never let him out of his sight or his lab again.  
  
When Morty slept, he either fell asleep on a stool as he sat beside Rick and was supposed to assist him or the occasional naps in the space car with Rick's drunk voice droning in the background – which was pretty comfy, but since his grandfather would always shake him awake minutely, he didn't really get much sleep – or he had been passing out from exhaustion, strapped naked to a metal table while Rick was busy "experimenting" on him for hours on end.  
A shiver ran down Morty's spine at the memories and he buried his face deeper into the pillow.  
  
  
He wondered how his new Rick was. Would he be as mean as his last one?  
This Rick certainly looked scary, but he hadn't yelled or hurt him yet.  
Morty would just have to wait and see.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kind of short first chapter, but this is just the introduction to our story anyways.  
> I hope you find it intriguing enough to continue reading it :)


	2. First Experiment and Bad Memories

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: there's heavily hinted rape in this chapter.

** Second Chances AKA The Rick One For Me – Chapter 2: First Experiment and Bad Memories  
  
  
  
**

As Morty A-22β6 woke up it was still dark, the sun barely peeking over the horizon.  
It had been a while since he had been last able to sleep for that long. Fortunately, his sleep had been dreamless and it was probably thanks to that and the comfort of his old bed that his slumber was this drawn out.  
  
Morty then remembered that it wasn't really his bed. He wasn't really at home but at the home of his new Rick – P-78.  
Nervousness weaseled its way into his system again and with slightly wobbly legs, he got out of bed.  
Not sure, what he was supposed to do now, he decided to freshen up in the bathroom and put some new clothes on. After all, he hadn't even changed before going to bed and was still clad in his graduation robe.  
  
He went over to his closet – which wasn't really _his_ closet – to pick out a fresh outfit.  
As he opened the door though a pile of junk pooled out of it. Morty was surprised by that, but quickly recovered again and got on his knees to take a closer look at the pile of trash.  
He blinked in surprise at what he found. It were a bunch of black hoodies, leather chokers and wristbands and posters from what looked like a gothic or rock band that Morty had never heard of before.  
Did these belong to the Morty that lived here previously?  
  
He crammed the stuff back into the bottom of the closet and instead looked at the clothes that hung on the rack.  
A bunch of yellow t-shirts, which all looked honestly the same, hung neatly on it.  
Morty worried his bottom lip as he skimmed through them and sighed in relieve that he found a long sleeved shirt among them.  
  
It was probably stupid, but Morty was careful that his body was covered up.  
Showing skin wasn't even the problem. The problem was the bruises and scars that he had on them – the marks of ownership that _he_ had left on him.  
Morty just didn't want anyone else to see them. Honestly, he didn't want to see them himself either.  
They were just reminders of many painful memories…  
  
With fresh clothes in hand, he made his way to the second floor bathroom.  
Everything was so eerily silent that it made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.  
It seemed that really no one but he and Rick lived inside this house.  
Morty's stomach knotted at the thought and he really wondered what had happened.  
Could he ask his new Rick about it or would he get angry with him if he did?  
  
Well, there was still time to wonder and worry over that later, he told himself as he made himself presentable inside the bathroom.  
After he was done, he gingerly went down the stairs and towards the kitchen.  
To his surprise, Rick was already there, coffee machine running, as he fixed himself a bowl with cereal and milk.  
  
"Oh, you're up already?" the man greeted him. "Well, you did miss dinner so I guess you're probably hungry now."  
  
Morty shyly nodded and also got himself a bowl from the cupboard.  
If Rick noticed that he trudged nervously around and tried to avoid eye contact with him as much as possible, he didn't comment on it at least.  
As they both took a seat at the dining room table, they began to eat in silence until Rick spoke up.  
  
"You excited to finally go to a normal high school again?" he asked.  
  
"S-s-school?" was the stuttered reply.  
  
The older lifted one side of his eyebrow. "Didn't you go to school in your dimension?"  
  
Rick avoided commenting on the bad stutter. It was actually the first time that he had heard the boy speak.  
  
Morty only shook his head. He didn't tell him how his Rick had kept him from visiting school.  
  
"Well, I leave it up to you if you want to go or not. I'm not gonna force you or anything." Rick said and continued to spoon his cereal.  
  
Seems like the conversation was over. Morty also fixated more on his breakfast while he mulled over what Rick had told him.  
Should he go to school again? He had probably missed so much that he wouldn't be able to keep… but on the other hand, he would have a bit of normalcy back in his life.  
Well, as _normal_ as you could consider his life to be.  
  
After they were done with breakfast, both went their separate ways again. Rick grabbed a mug with fresh coffee and vanished into the garage and Morty went into the parlor to watch some TV.  
As time kept passing by, Morty still mentally debated if he should go to school or not.  
Sparring one more glance at the clock and seeing that he would have to leave now if he wanted to be on time, he made up his mind and got up from the couch.  
  
He hurried upstairs to get his schoolbag and was briefly reminded of the items that he had found in his closet as he passed it. There was no time now, so he would probably ask Rick about that stuff later.  
As he was about to hurry out of the door, he wondered if he should tell Rick that he was leaving.  
  
Fearing that he might be punished if he left without saying a word, he hesitantly ventured to the garage.  
Slowly, as not to interrupt his grandfather, he peeked his head inside.  
  
"U-um, R-R-Rick?" he stuttered in a squeaky voice. "I-I-I'm go-going to s-school n-now."  
  
Rick turned around and looked at him with an analyzing stare for a moment before he turned back and grunted in acknowledgement. Getting no further reaction, Morty closed the door again and hurried to leave the house through the front door.  
He really had to run now if he wanted to make it in time.  
  
  
Arriving at school was strange for him.  
It had been so long since he had last visited the Harry Herpson High School.  
As he wandered through the halls, he felt nervousness creeping up on him full force again. It seemed that he remembered only now that he actually used to have bullies that liked to harass him on the school grounds even though he luckily didn't run into any of them yet.  
There was also something else that he had forgotten about and was reminded off as he saw _her_.  
  
Jessica.  
He had honestly forgotten about her. Well, it wasn't like he was worth her anyways.  
She deserved something better and not someone like him who was already ruined.  
However, as she looked his way, he smiled shyly and waved at her.  
She only blinked in confusion at him. It made him wonder if she didn't even know who he was.  
Maybe the Morty of this dimension had never talked to her before or something.  
  
He could remember that he had talked to his crush in his dimension even though it didn't look like he had really a chance with her.  
They would have probably ended up only being friends anyways if he would have had the chance to continue seeing her at school. Seeing that he wasn't even allowed that, he never became that close to her.  
Considering what had went down in his dimension, it was probably for the better though. If they would have been friends she would have only ended up in harm's way, too…  
  
As class started, Morty felt clearly overwhelmed by the topics. As he had already feared, he had missed so much and was so far behind that he was hopelessly lost and barely understood what the teachers were talking about.  
Maybe it had been a dumb decision for him to go to school again. He knew that he couldn't hope to pass – not even as barely as he did on the exam at the Morty Academy.  
  
However, things weren't all that different in this dimension.  
The Morty of P-78 had been obviously as much of a loner as he was and lacked friends, so it wasn't unusual that he sat alone during lunch at one table. Unfortunately, he had forgotten to pack himself something to eat.  
What did strike him as odd though was when one guy of the nerd circle approached him briefly and asked if he was out of his Goth phase already.  
He only shrunk in on himself and blinked in confusion at the boy with the glasses that retreated as quickly as he had approached him.  
  
Morty thought back on the things that he had found shoved inside his closet and wondered if the Morty of this dimension had been a Goth perhaps.  
The clothes definitely would have matched.  
He really wanted to ask his new Rick about this.  
  
As the rest of the school day went on, Morty wondered if he should even bother anymore. Maybe he should just drop out and stay at home again like before.  
Even if Rick P-78 had said that he doesn't care, Morty was sure that he would also be more satisfied with that idea.  
That way Morty would be there to assist him with his work the entire day and he was also pretty sure that this Rick's opinion about school was pretty much the same than the one that his original grandfather had.  
  
  
Morty A-22β6 trudged home unenthusiastically, dreading to get there.  
Even if his new Rick hadn't given him a bad first impression, he also didn't give him such a great one either. And there was still the point that the man looked rather scary with that cybernetic eye and scar on his face.  
He honestly was terrified again, not knowing what to expect once he finally got home.  
  
As it was, no bad surprises greeted him. Only silence, which was still something that creeped him out.  
The rest of the family was really absent as he still hadn't met anyone other than Rick yet and it didn't look like anything had been touched inside the house.  
Lost on what to do now, he cautiously went to the garage to check on Rick and announce that he was back again.  
  
"U-um, R-R-Rick? I-I'm home." He stuttered as he carefully peeked around the door again.  
  
Similar to how he had found him in the morning before he left, Rick was still sitting at his workbench and tinkering with whatever he was currently busy with.  
From the current angle, Morty could only see that an Erlenmeyer flask was on top of a burner and some greenish liquid was boiling inside it.  
As Morty had spoken up though, Rick had quickly turned around to him.  
  
"Oh, yeah." He said as looked at him with that analyzing gaze again, sounding as if he hadn't noticed how the time had passed. "If you're hungry, there's some leftover lasagna in the fridge that you can warm up."  
  
"O-okay. Th-thanks." He replied and left again.  
  
Feeling hungry since he had skipped out on lunch at school, he checked the refrigerator and found a plastic box. He peeked inside to confirm that it was truly food and not some bacteria colony or something else that Rick might be growing.  
After all, there was also a glass with something that looked like a seahorse – that had a head that looked like Rick's though instead of a seahorse head – inside one corner and he wouldn't get anywhere near that.  
  
Lunch was very much uneventful and he only briefly wondered if Rick had cooked this meal or if was just some simple microwave food as he slowly chewed down the leftovers, which didn't taste so bad.  
Afterwards, he went up to his room, not knowing what to do with himself.  
As he faced his closet once again, he remembered that he still hadn't asked Rick about the clothes and Morty P-78.  
He wondered if he should just go back down and ask right now.  
  
The wondering went on for almost an hour as he tried to find the courage to approach the scientist with these kind of personal questions.  
He was interrupted though as Rick suddenly called for him.  
  
"Morty. Come down to the garage. I need you for something."  
  
The boy swallowed heavily but dutifully went downstairs.  
As he entered the garage, Rick opened the hatch that led to his underground lab.  
  
"Gotta get down there for that stuff." The elder merely explained as he already climbed down the ladder.  
  
Taking a deep breath, Morty slowly followed him.  
He dreaded each step that he took, counting the rungs in his mind as if to distract himself.  
  
"W-what are w-we gonna d-d-do?" Morty asked nervously.  
  
He didn't like Rick's subterranean lair. There was too much time that he had to spend down here. Too many memories…  
  
"Take your clothes off." Rick instructed without even looking at Morty.  
  
Apparently, he didn't feel bothered enough to let his grandson in on the details of why they were down here for or what exactly they were going to do.  
  
"W-w-what?" the boy stuttered so quietly that he himself almost didn't hear the word escaping his mouth.  
  
"I said off with your clothes." Rick had turned to look at him now, looking serious and the slightest bit impatient. "And I suggest all of them because whatever stays on will get ruined."  
  
_**_ _"_ _C_ _'_ _mon, Morty. Take your clothes off. You should know how this goes by now._ _"_ _A cold and harsh voice whispered in his ear.  
  
Even if he couldn_ _'_ _t see the devilish grin, he could feel it on the lips that were pressed against his ear.  
The rancid breath sent cold shivers down his back.**  
  
_ Reluctantly Morty began to strip out of his clothes.  
Rick had stopped paying attention to him in favor or fumbling with something on the table – probably some instruments or chemicals.  
As the shuffling sounds of clothes subsided – indicating that Morty finished undressing – he turned back to the boy again.  
He had opened his mouth, clearly intending to give his grandson further instructions but halted.  
  
The boy was completely naked, but trying to cover his body up with his arms as best as he could, while also clenching his legs tightly together.  
Now, neither Morty's shy behavior nor the sight of his grandson's unclad body were anything new or shocking to Rick, but the sight of an almost endless amount of bruises and badly healed scars was something that he wasn't used to see and certainly not to such an extent.  
  
The boy looked like a mess. Seemed like his previous Rick hadn't taken very good care of him. He also took note that this Morty was thinner and scrawnier than his previous Morty, which was weird since most Mortys – at least the standard types – usually had identical heights.  
Trying to ignore the sight – and refusing to comment on it – Rick focused back on the task at hand.  
  
"Here, rub this salve on your body." he said as he shoved an unlabeled jar in the hands of the boy. "Make sure to put it everywhere on your skin. On your face, too."  
  
Morty looked a little dumfounded at the jar in his hand. In it was a turquoise-colored, gel-like substance, which smelled a bit weird.  
Not wanting to test his new Rick's patience and risking him getting angry with him, Morty dipped his fingers in the jar and scrapped some of its contents out.  
As instructed, he smeared the salve on every inch of his skin minus the hair on top of his head and tried not making a face at the slimy feeling.  
Again, he waited for further instructions as he was finished with the task. He shivered a little as he was standing naked and covered in the goo-like substance, which felt like it wasn't getting warmer on his skin and the cool air in the underground laboratory didn't help much either.  
  
"Okay, now get on the table." Rick said as he noticed that the boy was done.  
  
For a moment, Morty was frozen in place as he stared at the metal table in question.  
He knew this table all too well.  
  
_**_ _"_ _Get on the table already! Don_ _'_ _t make me repeat myself, Morty!_ _"_ _there was a promise of pain in Rick_ _'_ _s voice – even more pain than what was already awaiting him – if he wouldn_ _'_ _t obey.**  
  
_ The table had metal cuffs on top of its surface to strap down and immobilize any unwilling specimen that came to lay down on it. From experience, Morty also knew that sections of the table were movable so that the helpless victim's arms and legs could be arranged to a spread eagle position if so desired.  
With even more reluctance, Morty climbed on the cold surface of the metal table.  
He shivered – and it wasn't only from the cold – as he stiffly laid down.  
Morty's breath, which had considerably sped up through Rick's instructions only became heavier and his heart was beating so hard as if it wanted to break out of his chest. He was getting close to actually hyperventilating as Rick walked over to him and cuffed his hands and feet to the table.  
  
_**Cold metal was biting sharply into his wrists and ankles as he struggled against his bonds.  
No matter if it was an injection that caused his veins to burn or if cold metal was parting his skin and flesh, it was always unbearably painful.  
  
However, the pain grew worst when _ he _would part his legs and move between them. The searing burn in his backside something that he never got used to. Never will get used to.  
  
Wails of agony echoed through the room as hips moved harshly against him.  
This had nothing to do with science. It was only for the man_ _'_ _s selfish, sick pleasure…**  
  
_ "Okay, now that you're strapped in and can't run away anymore, I can you tell you what we're gonna do. The salve that you smeared on your body is supposed to give you fire resistance. It still needs some testing though and we're going to test it with this." As he said that he showed Morty a flamethrower that he had ready at his side.  
  
"W-w-w-what?!" Morty squeaked.  
  
The boy was actually surprised that Rick wasn't planning on doing what he had expected – what his old Rick always did to him – and was even the slightest bit relieved about that.  
However, that didn't mean that the prospect of this Rick using a flamethrower on him was much more comforting.  
  
Rick, thinking Morty's squeak was only out of fright, continued "Don't worry, I already tested it before and know that it works. I just need to check if I need to tweak it a bit more before I can release it on the market. The only thing that I couldn't test with my previous test subjects is the sensation. How hot it feels or if it's painful. Stuff like that."  
  
This revelation didn't make Morty feel much better. It was probably good to know that the salve worked and he wouldn't be burned to a crisp, but the promise that this could be painful was still frightening.  
If he hadn't been strapped to the metal table, he would have already jumped up and fled from the house without even caring about his state of nudeness.  
  
"Okay, I need you to tell me when it hurts." Rick said as he put something that looked akin to welding goggles on his face.  
  
After he had the backpack with the three tanks that were filled with flammable liquid fuel and gas strapped on his back, he prepared the flamethrower by opening the ignition valve and pressing the button to activate the spark plug.  
A small flame lit up in front of the nozzle and then he pulled the trigger, letting the fire stream out and aiming it up to the ceiling at first.  
Then he slowly lowered the flames onto Morty who was wriggling in his cuffs.

As soon as the fire touched the boy, he let out a loud scream. Rick immediately stopped and let go of the trigger, stopping the fire stream.  
  
"Does it hurt?" he asked after he pulled the goggles up and looked at the frightened brunet that had tears streaming down his face.  
  
"N-n-n-no. It d-d-didn't. I'm so-so-sorry."  
  
It really hadn't hurt, but the sight of that fire coming so close to his body had freaked him out and his heart was still hammering wildly inside his chest. That he wasn't hyperventilating right now was actually a surprise since he was pretty sure that he was having a panic attack at the moment.  
  
Despite Morty's expectations, Rick didn't throw any insults at him and only said "Okay. Try to keep it together and tell me when it hurts or gets too hot."  
  
With that, he pulled the goggles down again and once again aimed with the flamethrower high above Morty before pulling the trigger.  
Again, he slowly lowered it onto Morty's body who this time kept quiet and was only breathing heavily.  
  
The boy watched as the flames licked over his body, yet it wasn't painful. His skin didn't show any reaction and he also couldn't feel the immense heat that he knew was coming from the fire.  
His breathing became slower and he watched with an almost morbid fascination how the flames danced over his naked chest, arms and legs.  
  
This went on for only a few minutes, but to Morty it started to feel like hours. His body still felt numb to the danger that was touching it, but he started to feel the heat at his scalp, which hadn't been covered with the salve and sweat was forming at the tip of his hairline.  
Morty tried to hold on some more, but the heat at his scalp was rising to painful levels fast.  
  
"P-please, s-s-stop, R-Rick. I-i-i-isn't this enough al-already?" Morty meekly begged.  
  
The flames were off him in an instant again.  
  
"Did it hurt? Did it become too hot?" Rick had lifted the goggles once again.  
  
"It-it was star-starting to hurt at m-m-my scalp. It-it became to-to-too hot there." Morty answered.  
  
"Ah. I see." Rick just replied.  
  
He put the little flame at the nozzle of the flamethrower out now and got out of his gear.  
Then he moved over to the metal table and released Morty from his bindings.  
  
"How did the salve work though? How did it feel? Was it hot? Warm?" Rick asked.  
  
He needed detailed information. After all, that was what this whole test was about.  
  
"I did-didn't feel anything. I-I guess, it felt ki-kind of numb." Morty admitted as he slowly sat up and rubbed his wrist where some light marks were starting to form due to his struggling against the cuffs.  
  
"Numb, huh?"  
  
Well, this was good enough for Rick. Meant that he could finally go and sell this recipe to earn some sweet money with it. Of course only to the highest bidder.  
  
"Yo--urrp--u can put your clothes on again." Rick said as he saw that Morty didn't get up from the table even though he had been completely unbound.  
  
The boy had just been looking at him with a questioning gaze as if he was waiting for permission while again clenching his legs together as if he felt incredibly uncomfortable.  
Indeed, only after Rick had said that he could put his clothes back on did Morty give a small nod and scrambled down from the table.  
As the boy bent down to gather up his clothes from the floor and with his back now facing the scientist, Rick's eyes caught something. He didn't really mean to stare at Morty's naked back, which was covered in as much scars and bruises as the rest of the boy's body, but that something that he saw was kind of hard to overlook.  
  
'GRANPA'S BITCH' was etched into the skin of his grandson's lower back in big, bold letters.  
  
The letters looked like they were cut very cleanly and must have been made with a really sharp knife or a scalpel.  
It really made him question about the boy's previous Rick, but before he opened his mouth to ask something, he stopped himself again.  
As the yellow shirt finally covered the questionable carvings, Rick turned his head away.  
  
"U-u-um…" Morty started nervously as he remembered that he still wanted to ask the other about a certain something.  
  
"Hmm?" Rick lifted one side of his unibrow as he heard the stuttering.  
  
That was really a horrible habit. It was obvious to him that the boy wanted to ask something, but he wasn't even able to speak up properly.  
They really needed to do something about that.  
  
"What is it?" he finally urged on.  
  
"I j-ju-just wa—I-I found st—so-some things i-in my closet."  
  
"Oh, yeah. I hadn't thrown that out yet." Rick remembered. "That stuff belonged to my Morty. He had a different taste. Or it was probably just a phase or whatever…"  
  
He shrugged after he had trailed off. Then Rick continued.  
  
"I redecorated your room to look like the standard—like-like yours probably looked like. You can just throw the junk out or keep it or whatever you wanna do with it." He eyed Morty's long-sleeved shirt and probably thought that the boy also wasn't as much standard as he had expected before.  
  
"Um…c-can I ask y-you so-sum-something else?"  
  
Figuring that the boy had more questions about the gothic posters and attire that the other-dimensional version of him had owned, he nodded for him to continue.  
  
"Wh-what happened h-here? What ha-had happened to-to the o-others?" Morty dared to ask.  
  
Rick didn't answer. He merely looked away.  
  
Seeing as the other kept silent, the brunet still dared to prod. "What ha-hap-happened to you-your family?"  
  
Still no answer. Morty knew that he should take the silence as a cue to shut up because the other clearly didn't want to talk about it, but he needed to know.  
  
"C-can y-yo-you at la-least t-tell me what ha-had happened to y-yo-your Morty?"  
  
Again, Rick kept silent.  
Morty waited, slowly losing the guts to continue to probe even if he really wanted some answers when the elder suddenly sighed.  
  
"I killed him."  
  
With those words hanging in the air, he left the lab.  
Morty could only stare wide-eyed after him.  



	3. Weapon Testing and Nightmares

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rick P-78 builds a weapon that he'll have to test and Morty A-22β6 has a nightmare, which reveals a bit more about his traumatizing past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: violence and rape in this chapter!

** Second Chances AKA The Rick One For Me – Chapter 3: Weapon Testing and Nightmares **

  
  
  
Morty sat in his room, pondering and full of worry.  
He had wanted to think that the new Rick that he got wasn't so bad. However, the man had just confessed to him mere hours ago that he had killed his Morty.

Maybe, he had also killed the rest of the family?  
  
Morty clutched his stomach tightly, sure that the pains he felt inside were only from fear and not from the fact that it was time for dinner and he should probably eat something. He honestly wasn't hungry now.  
  
All of this… Just as he had thought that things were finally going better for him…  
And now he just got to carry the familiar sensation from before around with him. Even though this Rick had been treating him nicer than his original grandfather had – so far…  
  
Morty worried his lower lip as he rocked back and forth at the edge of his bed. He had drawn up his legs and wrapped his arms around them. An anxiety attack was slowly working itself up inside of him.  
  
Morty tried to keep his breath steady with no success. Thick globs of tears welled up in his eyes and he started to sob.  
As his mind drifted to even darker thoughts, he began to think that this was probably what he deserved.  
Maybe, he was just meant to die by the hands of a Rick after all…  
  
A knock on the door ripped momentarily through the overwhelmingly dark cloud inside his head.  
  
"I made dinner for us. You wanna come down to eat?" Rick asked through the door.  
  
As the man got no answer, he moved his head closer to the still closed door.  
That's when he heard the sobbing inside and decided to actually check on the boy.  
  
"Hey, you okay?" he asked as he peeked inside the room.  
  
He saw Morty rocking back and forth on the bed and sobbing into his knees.  
  
Rick quickly went over to the weeping boy and knelt in front of him. "Shit. Are you hurt or something?"  
  
Morty only shook his head but still refused to look up.  
Rick figured that it must be an anxiety attack or something like that. His own Morty hadn't been really prone to that, but he had heard from other Ricks that their Mortys had some real trouble with that and some also needed medication for it.  
  
"Hold on a second." Rick said and dashed to his garage.  
  
Since he had planned to get himself a new Morty, he had prepared for all eventualities. As such, he also got some Xanax.  
He rummaged through his shelf till he found the bottle of pills. Then he made his way back up to Morty's room.  
On the way, he grabbed a glass and filled it with water.  
With pill bottle and glass in hand, he knelt down in front of the boy again.  
  
"Here. Take this. It should help you."  
  
Finally, Morty looked up. He eyed the pill bottle wearily but uncurled and held his hand out anyway. There was no sense in trying to resist.  
Rick smiled a little and handed him a pill and then the glass with water, watching how the boy swallowed it.  
  
"As I said, I made dinner. So, if you're hungry come down. Okay?"  
  
Morty nodded. Still, he hadn't regained his appetite yet so he probably wouldn't eat anything.  
He didn't dare to tell that to Rick though.  
  
The scientist then got back on his feet and decided to leave the room, safely taking the pill bottle with him again.  
If the boy wanted to come down then he would come down. And if not… oh well. Rick wasn't going to force him.  
  
  
In the end, Morty didn't go, leaving Rick to sit at the table and eat dinner alone.  
The boy had just become really tired from the medication and had decided to go to bed and sleep right away.  
  
  
  


* * *

 

  
  
When Morty awoke the next morning, he still felt groggy and tired.  
He could probably blame the medication on it even if he wasn't exactly sure what Rick had given him yesterday.  
As he looked out of his window and saw how high the sun already stood in the sky, he was pretty sure that he would be late for school even without checking his alarm clock.  
Well, he had been debating the day before if it even made sense for him to go to school again…  
  
With a sigh, he went through his morning routine in the bathroom before entering the kitchen.  
Again, he ate a bowl of cereal in silence, but this time without Rick showing up.  
He was probably busy in the garage or maybe he was somewhere else in the universe – Morty wasn't too sure about that because he couldn't actually hear any loud noises.  
  
After he was done with breakfast, he decided to just go and check.  
Rick was indeed in his self-acclaimed workshop, busying himself again with one of his inventions.  
As soon as Morty had peeked inside the garage, Rick turned around to him again.  
  
"You're not at school?" he asked despite seeing the obvious answer.  
  
"N-no…" Morty muttered. "I-I-I think, I'm j-ju-just go-going to drop o-out. S-sch-school j-just isn't f-for me, I think."  
  
He wasn't only thinking that it was useless for him to go because he was so far behind in all of his classes.  
No, he thought that there was really no point if he would just end up getting killed by his new Rick anyways…  
  
"Well, that's okay. It's not like I'm gonna force you to go or anything." Rick repeated his words from yesterday. "In fact, I think it's a good decision. Gives you time to do more important things…"  
  
"L-like helping you o-out?"  
  
"Like helping me out." Rick agreed.  
  
Morty finally dared to approach the man that was an alternate version of his grandfather.  
From up close, he could see that Rick P-78 was working on a gun.  
Morty had never seen that kind of design before, but he was pretty sure that it was a weapon – created to cause harm.  
  
"D-d-do you nee-need m-my help, R-R-Rick?" he asked tentatively.  
  
Well, since they were already on the topic…  
  
"No. Not right now." Rick answered and was already back at facing his work.  
  
Nimble fingers continued to assemble the intricate parts of the weapon, adjusting everything with miniscule detail.  
Morty watched him work for a bit before he dared to ask another question.  
  
"Y-you-you'll ha-have to t-test it later, r-r-right?"  
  
"Well, obviously I'll test it before I deliver it to the guy that had ordered it." Rick confirmed.  
  
Again, he only continued to focus on his work and missed how his new grandson started to tremble.  
Morty was scared of it. He secretly hoped that Rick wouldn't finish the gun so he wouldn't get to try it out.  
Memories of how _his_ Rick had always tested out weapons breached the surface of his mind.  
  
_**"Hold still, Morty." Rick instructed him.  
  
"N-no, R-Rick. P-pl-please don't…" he weakly protested back.  
  
"Morty, if you don't want me to accidentally hit something vital, which would lead to your death then stop moving already!" his grandfather scowled while he still pointed the barrel of his gun at him.  
  
Morty screwed his eyes shut, trying to stop his body from trembling so much with little success.  
Then there was a loud bang and pain exploded in his body.  
He hadn't even notice how he fell on the ground from the impact and only became aware of it as Rick suddenly stood over him.  
  
The scientist assessed the damaged and talked excitedly about the range and effectiveness of his gun while he inspected the gaping wound on his grandson's body.  
Morty didn't care about the details, didn't want to hear anything about that. He just wanted the pain to stop.  
However, his grandfather was more busy admiring his handiwork instead of helping the wounded child that writhed on the floor in agony…**  
  
_ Morty shivered, remembering it all too vividly. He didn't ever want to relive such pain again, but being a Morty – being owned by a Rick – left him with little choice.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
It took another few hours in which Rick continued to work on his weapon without a break and Morty watched him from the side, waiting for a moment that the scientist would task him with something.  
As it was, P-78 didn't really need any help or assistance from the boy though and finally finished the gun.  
He examined it as he held it up in the air, twisting and turning it every which way to look at it from all angles.  
  
"Okay. It's done. Time to test this baby out." He declared with a grin.  
  
Morty started to tremble. This was the moment that he had been so afraid of.  
However, there was no way around it now. Nothing that he could do…  
  
"Are you coming or what?" Rick's voice suddenly ripped him out of his anxiety-inducing thoughts.  
  
"Huh?" Morty looked up in surprise.  
  
He hadn't even noticed how he had unconsciously curled up and closed his eyes.  
Rick was standing with the gun in one hand and the portal gun in his other, right in front of an already open and swirling green portal.  
  
"W-whe-where are we go-going?"  
  
"You'll see." Rick only replied with a smug grin.  
  
Left with no real options to choose from other than to comply, Morty only nodded and followed after the older man.  
To his surprise, the place that they arrived at was a shooting range. It was an alien one, not one on earth, mind you, but Morty was pretty sure that that's what it was.  
  
Did that mean that he would be target practice not only for Rick but also for other aliens?  
Well, if Rick got money for it then he surely would do that.  
Heck, he would probably do it just for fun…  
  
"C'mon." Rick urged Morty to not fall behind as he went to a counter.  
  
He talked with the pink alien that resembled a jellyfish in a language that Morty didn't understand.  
Then he handed over a card, which the alien scanned and the passed back to him.  
  
As Rick pocketed the card, he led the way and explained to the brunet. "I always go to this shooting range because they allow you to bring your own weapons."  
  
They walked to a booth that was apparently the one that Rick had rented out.  
The older handed a pair of protection glasses and earmuffs to Morty before also putting on protective gear himself.  
Morty at first looked in confusion at the items but then put them on.  
It was just one surprise after the other for him as he slowly realized that this Rick didn't plan to use _him_ as a target to test out the gun.  
  
He watched in fascination as the other hit a button and a machine on the ceiling ejected a liquid that formed into a mean-looking alien.  
Rick shot the strange target causing it to completely liquefy again and the puddle disappeared into a drain on the ground.  
The machine moved around and created more images like that. Rick shot every one of them with dead precision and caused them to vanish again.  
  
Morty gulped as he watched it. Of course, he remembered that his own Rick had a pretty great aim and was never merciful enough to not shoot an alien that proved to be a danger or annoyance to him, but actually witnessing this precision while being in a safe situation and not running for his life for once was still a different experience for the boy altogether.  
  
After the machine stopped its course and didn't produce any more targets, Rick inspected his gun once again, checking for several things like how much heat it produced during constant use and how well the outer casing dammed it.  
The grin on his face showed that he was apparently very satisfied with it.  
  
He looked over to Morty then. "Hey, you wanna try it, too?"  
  
Morty spluttered, not able to form even a proper word much less a coherent sentence at the suggestion.  
  
"C'mere." Rick just pulled the boy over to where he stood and moved behind him.  
  
The brunet squeaked and stiffened immediately as the elder placed the gun in Morty's hands and showed him how he was supposed to hold it.  
It wasn't really the first time that the boy had held a gun in his hands and certainly not the first time that he had to shoot, but he acted more nervously than someone who was a complete noob with weapons and was told to kill a baby.  
Aside from that, he felt highly uncomfortable from the close proximity between his grandfather and himself.  
  
Rick hit the button once more, which started up the machine.  
Even though he tried to help Morty steady his arms and hands to properly aim, the boy was still shaking too much.  
  
"I-I-I'm sorry, b-but I-I ca-can't." Morty stuttered weakly and just handed the gun back to Rick without pulling the trigger once.  
  
Rick accepted his weapon back wordlessly.  
Considering what a nervous wreck the boy was, it was probably better that he didn't try to shoot anything in here even if he would aim for the targets.  
Rick took over and finished the round, not missing one single mark once again.  
  
Thinking that that was enough testing and being satisfied with the results, he decided that they should return home for now.  
Morty didn't complain about that or say anything. He was honestly just really grateful that Rick hadn't tested the weapon on him like he had feared he would do.  
  
They actually arrived in the kitchen.  
  
Rick look down at Morty, regarding him with a look as if he was contemplating something.  
It seemed that he had made a decision as he suddenly held out the gun to the boy.  
Morty looked wide-eyed at it.  
  
"Put that on my workbench, okay? I'm gonna start making lunch now." Rick explained.  
  
The boy visibly relaxed again and accepted the weapon.  
Dutifully, he went into the garage to put the gun where his Rick wanted to while the older man began to rummage inside the kitchen cupboards to retrieve pots and pans.  
Morty placed the gun carefully on the workbench and wanted to return to the kitchen when he suddenly halted.  
He wasn't sure if he was imagining it, but he thought that he heard a shrill humming-sound coming from the weapon. Wasn't it also vibrating slightly?  
Before he could wonder more about it, there was suddenly a flash of bright light followed by darkness. The loud sound that came with it didn't even register in his brain anymore.  
  
  
Rick dropped everything as he heard the sound of the explosion.  
Quickly, he hurried into the garage and took in the damage.  
Smoke was rising from the busted gun that still laid on his workbench, but Rick wasn't even looking at it. He was more focused on Morty who was laying on the floor.  
  
"Shit! Are you okay, Morty?" he asked and rushed to the boy's side.  
  
The brunet didn't answer him. His eyes were closed as if he was asleep.  
Rick frantically checked for vital signs and to his relief, he found that the boy was still alive albeit unconscious.  
He gathered Morty into his arms and went over to the hatch that led to his underground lab. Rick hit a switch that activated the stairs since climbing down the ladder while holding the boy would be too much of a hassle.  
  
Once down there, he placed the boy on an examination table and gathered some devices and tools.  
He gave Morty a complete checkup and miraculously he had only sustained some minor outer injuries – light burns on some places and a few cuts and scratches from where he had been struck by some loose parts of the exploding gun – that Rick quickly patched up.  
Unfortunately, the boy was still out cold though.  
  
Rick sat on a chair at the boy's side but couldn't do anything else now other than to wait until Morty woke up again.  
He perked up as Morty suddenly started to whimper, but didn't regain consciousness.  
Listening closer, he could hear that the boy was mumbling his name in his sleep.  
From the way that he squirmed on the table, it became obvious to the scientist that he was having a nightmare.  
  
Rick quietly contemplated what to do now, but his curiosity got the better of him and so he got up and wheeled a slightly bigger machine next to the table.  
He put some electrodes on Morty's head before hooking himself up to the machine, too.  
This device enabled him to enter another person's dreams, but unlike the dream inceptors, this one only allowed him to watch like a spectator without being able to influence the dream or the dreamer in any way.  
It was useful if you really only wanted to view what someone else was dreaming about without unnecessarily intercepting them – or placing yourself in danger.  
  
  
_The place inside the dream looked like a long hallway inside of an old abandoned space station. It was impossible to see the ends of the corridors in neither direction because they were plunged in darkness.  
Rick could see himself, walking down the hallway and Morty was running behind him, trying keep up.  
  
However, no matter how hard the boy tried, the distance between the two kept widening. It looked like the boy was running in slow motion and without moving forward even an inch.  
To Morty, it probably felt like he was trying to move through thick molasses.  
  
"R-R-Rick! W-wait up, p-pl-please!" the boy tried to shout after Dream Rick P-78, but it went unheard.  
  
Despite his continued struggles and pleas for the other to wait for him, the space between them grew bigger and bigger until Rick was gone. His pleas had fallen on deaf ears and Rick hadn't even turned around to look at him once. The man had just continued on his way, undeterred and without him.  
Morty stopped his struggles and sank to the ground, sobbing pathetically.  
  
"Do you know why he left you behind?" a bodiless voice asked. "It's because he doesn't care about you."  
  
Out of the shadows materialized a person that Rick P-78 recognized yet didn't.  
It was a Rick and from the look of recognition and horror on Morty's face, he could only assume that this one must be the boy's previous Rick.  
The guy looked actually pretty generic yet he wore an ugly evil grin on his face and the collar of his lab coat stood stiffly up, making him look still a bit more intimidating.  
  
"N-n-no! I-It can't b-be!" Morty stuttered horrified. "Y-y-you can't b-be here! Y-you-you're dead!"  
  
"_ Y-you-you're dead~ _" Rick A-22β6 mocked the boy's stutters in a faked, high-pitched voice. "You dumb little piece of shit should really know better than that. Don't just think that now that I'm dead you'll be rid of me. You can never get rid of me. I will always be here. Always inside your dreams. Even if you die, you won't escape me!"  
  
While he said those things, he advanced on the boy and effortlessly lifted him up to push him against the cold metallic wall.  
  
"And you know why that is, _ Morty _?" he taunted. "Because you belong to me. I own you!"  
  
He pulled a razor-sharp scalpel out of an inside pocket of his lab coat and started to cut Morty's clothes away, starting with his yellow long-sleeved shirt.  
  
"N-no. P-pl-please don't." the brunet begged.  
  
His body trembled from the terror that he felt and tears were streaming down his face.  
Morty knew exactly where this was going even before his Rick started to cut his pants and underwear to shreds till he was completely exposed.  
Yet, he didn't fight back. Not only because he couldn't move much from his current position and knew that the other was far stronger than him, but also because he knew what would happen if he tried to resist.  
  
Rick __A-22β6_ _ignored the pleas and whispered in a menacing tone, "Guess I need to remind you again who you belong to. Maybe this time I should make a_ reminder _where it's more visible, huh?"  
  
With those words, he let the sharp blade draw red lines on the boy's skin.  
As Morty whimpered in pain, Rick only laughed.  
  
"Damn, I really love the sounds you always make for me. Always makes me so fucking hard for you."  
  
Morty only shook his head and clenched his eyes shut tight as his grandfather reached between their bodies to open his own pants now.  
He already knew what was going to happen. It was always the same. But no matter how often it happened, he would never get used to it.  
  
A loud scream erupted from his throat as he was lifted up and something entirely too big forced its way into his entrance.  
  
"P-pl-please s-stop, Gr-grandpa Rick." He continued to beg even if he knew that it was in vain.  
  
His grandfather had never stopped. He never cared in how much pain Morty was._

_Rick only ever cared about himself.  
  
This time again, the man ignored the pitiful words of his grandson and instead just continued to carve lines into the soft skin while roughly thrusting into him.  
  
  
Rick P-78 could only watch helplessly how the entire ordeal unfolded. Since his invention only allowed him to view dreams, he could not intervene in what was happening no matter how much he wanted to.  
He could feel his blood boiling as he saw his alternate self continue to rape and torture his new Morty, not ignorant of the boy's pain but actually delighting in it.  
This Rick was the worst. Goddamn sick, perverted sadistic bastard!  
  
Morty continued to wail and cry, wondering how he could feel so much pain if this was all just a dream – it could only be a nightmare, there was no other explanation for how this could be happening otherwise.  
As it was though, the only thing that he could do was endure it.  
Of course, he should have known that he just couldn't be lucky enough to have a dreamless sleep all the time. The last two days were just a merciful coincidence.  
These night terrors – _ his _Rick – would haunt him forever and the only thing that he could look forward to – could hope for – was that he would wake up soon.  
  
Eventually, everything became too much for Morty – too much for his poor mind – and the dream became suddenly a blur of darkness and light as he began to wake up.  
_ The machine exited Rick P-78 out of the dream before the boy became fully conscious again.  
Quickly he unhooked himself and Morty from the machine to avoid possible questions that the boy might have when he saw it.  
  
Not soon after he had pulled the last electrode from Morty's head did the brunet's eyes blink open.  
Tears were trailing down his cheeks and were blurring his vision as he rapidly tried to blink them away, attempting to take in his surroundings.  
After his sight somewhat focused again, he instantly spotted Rick – not _his_ Rick, but to his relief Rick P-78.  
  
"Had a nightmare?" the scientist asked as if he hadn't just witnessed it himself a moment ago.  
  
Morty averted his gaze and nodded silently.  
  
"You-you wanna talk about it?" Rick offered.  
  
Now, the boy shook his head.  
He really didn't want to talk about it. Scared of sharing the nightmare as if it would make it become reality if he did.  
  
Silence remained between them. Morty sat curled up on the examination table, hugging his knees and Rick sat on a swivel stool next to him and watched the boy who was still silently weeping.  
Then—  
  
"Can I ask you what happened with your previous Rick?"  
  
Morty shifted his head and looked back at P-78 but didn't say anything.  
He only looked at him for a long while.  
Finally, he answered.  
  
"I-I-I killed him. I killed my Rick."  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Does the ending feel like a déjà vu? Oh well, I guess we had something similar to this already…


	4. His Past and New Revelations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happened between Morty A-22β6 and his Rick...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Big exposition chapter (for the most part anyways). Not sure if you're a fan of that or not, but I hope this was what you've been waiting for. 
> 
> Warning: this chapter contains very graphic rape, violence, gore and death! If you have a weak stomach and/or are easily triggered, you should not read it.

** Second Chances AKA The Rick One For Me – Chapter 4: His Past and New Revelations **

  
  
  
"You don't exactly strike me as the kind of person that would just murder someone…" In his mind, Rick added though, 'Not that that would mean anything…'  
  
He knew that looks could be deceiving and P-78 actually had a hard time trusting Mortys, but he honestly couldn't – **didn't** – want to believe that the boy in front of him was a heartless monster that could kill someone in cold blood.  
  
"…Can you tell me what happened between you and your Rick?"  
  
Again, Morty looked at him for a long time.  
Then he sighed and began to retell how his life had been with his original Rick…  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
When Rick entered into their lives, Morty actually though that it was fun.  
Sure, the scientist had been demanding, but it was nothing that the brunet couldn't deal with. He was just so elated that he had a friend for the first time and on top of it someone who shared his love for science.  
  
However, soon the adventures and experiments stopped being fun. His grandfather became more and more imperious each day.  
It was probably at the point when Morty's parents divorced that the scales tipped completely – and Rick had even confessed to him that he had staged the whole thing.  
  
  
"I've taken over the family, Morty. Now you have to do whatever I want. Forever!" Rick had towered over him as he went on with his tirade.  
  
  
From that point on, things had taken a turn for the worse for Morty.  
Suddenly Rick had made the boy drop out of school. As things were, his mother hadn't complained about it. She practically accepted every one of Rick's decision without asking questions.  
  
Without somewhere else to be at, he was constantly stuck to Rick's side now.  
That on itself alone wouldn't have been so bad either, but unfortunately for Morty it didn't just stop there.  
  
  
"Morty, take your clothes off."  
  
There were standing in the underground lab when Rick told him that out of the blue.  
  
"What? W-why?" he had asked back.  
  
"Because Grandpa wants to do a little experiment. That's why, Morty!" the answer sounded gruffer than was necessary in Morty's ears.  
  
"Aw jeez, Rick. Is it gonna hurt?"  
  
"It will if you don't stop complaining and start stripping now!" Rick was getting aggravated fast.  
  
Deciding that it was a better idea to just obey his grandfather, Morty dutifully removed all of his clothes till he only stood in his underwear.  
  
Rick rolled his eyes, clearly annoyed. "The boxers, too, dipshit."  
  
Morty bit his lip and reluctantly followed that order, too.  
  
"Get on the table." Rick dictated next.  
  
Again, Morty complied and crawled slowly on the examination table. He shuddered as he felt the cold metal against his warm skin.  
Then he was suddenly pinned down by his grandfather who strapped him in the metallic cuffs. The scientist was handling him rather abrasively.  
  
"Ow! That hurt, Rick! You don't have to be so rough." He complained.  
  
"Shut up, you little shit!" Rick slapped him in the face with enough force that Morty's head snapped to the side.  
  
The boy was in shock from the action. He didn't understand why Rick had actually hit him.  
Hot tears welled up in his eyes as he could clearly feel the stinging of his red and slightly swelling cheek.  
Morty tried to rapidly blink the wetness away so his vision could focus on his grandfather again.  
  
The scientist had pulled over a table that held a tray with various surgical instruments on it.  
He selected a scalpel and held it up.  
  
"Don't worry, Morty. This won't hurt. **I** won't feel a thing." The grin on his face as he said that was downright sadistic.  
  
Morty's heart threated to jump out of his throat, but at the same time wanted to plummet through his stomach.  
  
This had to be a joke, right? Rick was just making one of his macabre jokes again, wasn't he?  
That had to be. That had to be it!  
  
Morty squirmed on the table as Rick brought the sharp instrument to the skin on his stomach.  
  
"Quit squirming around like that you, little shit, or I'll gonna end up cutting too deep and you're gonna bleed out. You want that, _Morty_?"  
  
"No, Rick. Pl-please stop!" Morty begged.  
  
Rick only laughed. A cold, cruel laugh.  
The next sound that pierced the room was a loud scream. Morty's scream of pain.  
  
The sharp blade dug deep into his body and was parting his skin. A line of red fluid started to run down his side and slowly began to pool on the table underneath his back.  
  
"Heh, heh. You can scream all you want. Not like anybody's gonna hear ya anyways." Rick only commented without stopping his brutal actions.  
  
Morty continued to wail as his grandfather made a long incision all the way from beneath his ribcage down to his pelvis.  
Rick placed the bloody scalpel back down on the tray and dug his fingers into the cut, prying the wound open.  
  
Morty was hyperventilating at this point and probably close to passing out from the pain.  
He felt like he couldn't breathe. Felt like his lungs were collapsing. He was sure that he was going to suffocate.  
  
"Hey! You not gonna wimp out on me now, Morty, are you?" Rick asked as he noticed that the boy became cross-eyed.  
  
He reached over to his little table and took a syringe with a pink liquid in it.  
Swiftly he jabbed it into the boy's arm and injected the contents into the body of his grandson.  
  
At first, the substance felt cold inside Morty's arm, but then it suddenly became searing hot.  
He cried out again and noticed that he suddenly felt more awake than before. His blurry vision focused again and he wasn't sure if it was only his imagination, but he thought that he was able to feel the pain even more intensely now.  
It was still hard to breathe though.  
  
"Can't have you falling asleep before the main event." Rick commented as he threw the empty syringe back on the tablet.  
  
Then he rearranged the lower part of the metal table so that the boy's legs were spread and moved between them before he focused his attention back on the hole on Morty's abdomen.  
  
"Hmm, you're insides are so pretty. Such a turn on…" He hummed as he shoved his hands inside the boy's body, feeling around. "You have no idea for how long I wanted to try this out. For how long I wanted to do this to you."  
  
One of his bloody hands left the unnatural orifice again and moved between the boy's legs, gliding over his limp boyhood and balls till it reached the opening between his lush mounds.  
A lone finger briefly smeared sticky red liquid over the entrance before it slid quickly inside.  
  
"NO! NO, R-RICK! PLEASE STOP! DON'T DO THAT! I-I-I DON'T WANT THIS!!" Morty still continued to beg for mercy.  
  
He didn't understand why Rick was doing this to him.  
Had Morty done something wrong and this was his punishment? Even if he did, it couldn't have been anything that warranted something like this to happen to him, right?  
He didn't know what to think of Rick's words. That he had wanted to do this for a long time already. That he had probably planned this for who knows how long.  
It was scaring him.  
  
Again, Rick merely cackled at his grandson's agony.  
  
"Geez, Morty. If you don't loosen up a bit I'm gonna break my finger in you. Totally forgot how tight little virgins like you are…" Despite the words, he didn't seem to mind the clenching around his digit as he moved inside the snug tunnel of the boy.  
  
"Please stop it! I don't want this!" Morty sobbed.  
  
His pleas fell on deaf ears.  
  
"Fuck! I really wonder how much I'll be able to see it when I fuck you." The older man wondered aloud as his other hand still dug around in the boy's intestines.  
  
The lone finger vanished from Morty's ass, but there was no time to feel relief.  
Rick's now free hand was busy opening his pants and the sound of a zipper being undone was entirely too loud in the spacious room.  
  
There was no doubt in the brunet's mind what was going to happen to him now.  
This wasn't just a sick joke but harsh and disgusting reality.  
  
Even though his voice was becoming horse from all the noises that he made and he didn't even know where he took the energy for it and it was so hard to breathe, he screeched at the top of his lungs as he felt a new sensation of pain in his lower body.  
  
Rick didn't give him time to adjust or anything.  
Quickly he plowed into the boy's broken body again and again.  
With his hands, he pried at the bleeding wound again and stared inside.  
  
"Damn! I swear I can see my dick in your insides!"  
  
Again, he thrusted his hand inside and fumbled around while he pistoned his hips like a maniac.  
  
All that Morty could feel was white hot pain.  
He tried so badly to just shut it all out and ignore the groaning sounds that his grandfather made, hoping he would pass out if not from the pain then from the lack of oxygen but the drug that Rick gave him made it somehow impossible.  
  
It felt like an eternity to the boy before it was finally was over.  
With some last furious jerks, the scientist stained his insides and left his body again.  
  
"Whew! What a ride!" Rick chuckled breathlessly. "We should really do this more often. Don't you think so, Morty?"  
  
The boy could only cough and whimper weakly in answer, being in too much pain to do anything else and still unable to get enough air into his lungs.  
  
Rick snorted in amusement.  
  
"I'm sure that I don't really have to tell you, but since you're such an idiot, I will do it anyways." Rick moved closer as he said that till he was practically in Morty's face. "You're not gonna tell anyone about this. Not that it would change anything. You should know better than anyone else that I'm unstoppable and no one's going to believe you anyways."  
  
Morty only sobbed in defeat as Rick left him lying on the table like that – still naked, cut open and bleeding. He gasped like a fish on land as he still felt like something was obstructing his aiways and his body trembled from the unfathomable pain.  
It took at least another half an hour before the strange medicine that he had been injected with lost its effect and he was finally embraced in the comforting darkness of unconsciousness.  
  
By the time he woke up again, Rick had stitched him crudely back together, but Morty could still feel the pain and would forever see the scars. Be forever reminded of what had happened…  
  
  
Ever since then that was what Morty's life was like.  
Sometimes it happened on adventures that he was dragged to, other times it was inside the garage when no one was at home, but most often it was in that underground lab where Rick would strap him to the metal table again and cut him open or inject weird fluids into his bloodstream that burned inside his veins while his grandfather used him.  
  
Of course, Rick would also do other things to him.  
Would stick him with alien "medicine" that made Morty nauseous and vomit for hours until he was sure that his inside were no longer in his body but somewhere in the huge puddle on the floor underneath him or he would test out his weapons and lasers on him, studying the damage that they caused on his body or he would put strange lotions on him that melted his skin and flesh all the way down to the bone and patch him up half-heartedly afterwards, leaving ugly scars and bruises all over his body that would be constant reminders of the pain that he had been in. He would be doing all of those things "in the name of science" without showing an ounce of remorse.  
Other times, he would just use him for his own selfish and sick pleasures and Morty couldn't even tell what he hated more because all of it hurt and he didn't want this anymore, didn't want Rick to touch him or come near him because it hurt. It hurt so much.  
  
And there was nothing that Morty could do about it. He had no place that he could go to where he would be save – after all, Rick had a portal gun and he could go anywhere he wanted with it.  
Even if Morty tried to run away to the ends of the universe, Rick would track him and follow and just drag him back and punish him for trying to escape.  
And he also knew that he couldn't fight back because he couldn't even hope to do anything against his grandfather. Who would ever be able to stop Rick Sanchez?  
So, trying to run or struggle was pointless.  
  
Still, he wanted to tell someone, wanted help, wanted to be saved from this nightmare that was his life now, but he just couldn't. Aside from the fact that no one would be able to even touch Rick, he couldn't tell his mother about this – not because Rick had told him not to, but because he was so worried that it wouldn't change anything. Because he feared that she wouldn't believe him.  
She would probably just side with Rick again as she always did. Like that one time when he came back home with a broken leg and she asked what had happened.  
He had told her that Rick did it and when she went to question her father, he said that it happened on their adventure and Morty was just too clumsy and fell and his mother only scolded him and told him to be more careful. Even if that wasn't what had happened at all. But she wouldn't listen to him…  
  
The brunet was slowly drained and worn down from the constant abuse.  
Rick didn't allow him to sleep anymore and the only times he was embraced by the blissful darkness of unconsciousness was when he eventually would pass out after his grandfather had done too much damage to his body.  
The experiments that he was forced to endure only seemed to get worse and no matter how often he searched for it in his grandfather's eyes, there was no regret or guilt. To Rick he was worth no more than a cheap, replaceable lab rat.  
  
It drove Morty slowly to a point where he couldn't keep it together anymore.  
He was starting to act irrationally defiant even if Rick wanted to make him believe that it was pointless. Even if he himself knew that it was pointless.  
  
  
"Dammit, Morty! Get on the damn table! Right now!!" Rick was enraged.  
  
Morty covered his naked body with his arms even though his grandfather had seen everything plenty of times already and stood his ground. "No, Rick! You can't do this to me!"  
  
"Of course, I can! You are my property, Morty! Without me you are nothing!!"  
  
"No! I'll-I'll—" he began to stutter.  
  
"You'll _what_? You're gonna tattle on Grandpa now, Morty? Go ahead and see what happens. You know what? I can already tell you what will happen. Nothing. Because no one cares about you. I own you Morty and I can do whatever I want with you and no one's going to stop me!!"  
  
Fat tears rolled down Morty's cheeks as he still refused to move even one bit.  
He didn't want to believe that Rick was right. Even if his mother allowed this to happen if she knew what exactly her father was doing to her son, she would put a stop to it. She had to!  
Morty had a small sliver of hope that his family would back him up if he told them the truth. They wouldn't side with Rick if they knew all about it! They weren't such heartless monsters and just blame Morty for all of this! He really wanted to believe that.  
  
Rick grew impatient with the boy, grabbed him and flung him on the table.  
The man really didn't give a fuck about the consequences as he indulge once more in his sick pleasure while additionally punishing his grandson.  
  
  
However, Morty had enough. He wouldn't keep quiet anymore. Couldn't keep it to himself anymore. Or he would end up breaking under the weight of all of this. Because Rick was breaking him. Slowly and painfully.  
And so, he sought out a moment in which his grandfather was completely wasted and wouldn't notice his absence to go to his mother.  
  
"M-mom?" he asked nervously, not sure how to tell her about the abuse that he had to endure at the hands of her father the entire time.  
  
"What is it, Sweetie?" Beth asked back, sounding a bit tipsy already.  
  
She was sitting on the couch in the living room, watching some TV show and in the middle of emptying a bottle of chardonnay. Ever since the divorce this was what a typical evening looked like for Beth Smith.  
  
Morty fumbled with the bottom of his shirt and then took a deep breath.  
Almost in a rush, he told everything. Told the gruesome story of what Rick had done to him and how he was treating him when they weren't sitting all together at the dinner table.  
Feeling the need to show her physical proof – because he was so afraid that she wouldn't believe him otherwise – he lifted the long sleeves of his shirt and showed all the bruises and scars that he was hiding from everyone else.  
  
Beth looked shocked and as she stared at her son's arms, she racked her brain trying to remember since when Morty had started to wear shirts with long sleeves.  
  
After the boy was done, she stood up and took him in her arms.  
  
"Oh, Morty." She tried to comfort him while sounding clearly shocked and upset by the revelation. "Don't worry. I won't let him do that to you anymore. I will do something about it."  
  
Morty smiled, feeling so relieved and assured that his mother understood and actually chose him over her father in this critical situation. He had doubted that things would really go this way. He had been so afraid that this would backfire and that she would still side with Rick and just say that he was exaggerating and his imagination was too active.  
But she believed him and she would support him even if it would mean that her father would vanish out of her life again and this time he would not return. Maybe this could work. Maybe she would be able to do something and make him go away. Maybe he was finally saved now.  
  
  
Having gained confidence from the small positive event, Morty decided to also tell his sister about what had happened.  
He knew that Summer would eventually get to hear about it and he wanted to be the one to tell her.  
The red-haired girl's reaction was similar to that off her mother.  
  
Morty had watched nervously as he saw the emotions on her face switch from shocked disbelieve to anger to concern for her brother.  
  
"Oh, Morty. I'm so sorry that we didn't notice." She wept as she hugged him tightly.  
  
Morty didn't blame her. He was forgiving his family, knowing that ever since the divorce they all had trouble coping with the new family situation.  
At that moment, for the first in months, he was happy again. He felt loved.  
And he had hope that things would change for the better now.  
But how wrong he could be…  
  
  
The next day while the family ate breakfast, Beth gave him a free pass to get away from Rick and out of the house by saying that Morty should go to school again.  
Rick immediately perked up and threw the boy a quick glance before he began to protest about that decision, but the blonde stood firm this time.  
  
It was odd for Morty to walk the school halls again that day, but he was glad to have at least a small piece of normalcy back.  
Of course, he wasn't simply okay again because of this and he knew that it would take a lot of time and therapy sessions before he ever would be okay again, but it was a start.  
  
Of course, as it often were with things in life that seemed too good to be true, it also was the case here.  
As Morty arrived back home it was eerily silent. He felt a heavy lump inside his stomach, but tried to ignore it.  
  
The bad feeling that he had only strengthened when he entered the parlor.  
It looked like there had been a fight inside the room as it was a complete mess.  
Fearing for his mother, Morty dashed without a second thought to the garage.  
As he busted into his grandfather's self-acclaimed workshop, his heart almost stopped.  
  
The sight that greeted him was a true nightmare.  
There was blood everywhere including on his grandfather who sat in his swivel chair and looked like he had been waiting for him.  
At the scientist's feet laid the mangled corpse of his sister and from Rick's left hand dangled the head of his mother.  
A mask of true terror was etched eternally into her features.  
  
Morty was so horrified that he couldn't move. He couldn't even cry or yell even though he really wanted to at the sight.  
It was as if something inside him had died along with his family.  
  
"Tsk, tsk, tsk, Morty." Rick scolded with a menacing grin on his face. "You've really done it now."  
  
He let go of the blond mane and his daughter's head rolled over the floor. It came to a stop right at Morty's feet and her dead blue eyes stared straight into her son's wide brown ones.  
The boy barely noticed that Rick stood up from the chair.  
  
"It looks like I really need to teach you a lesson, _Morty_."  
  
In just few long strides, he reached his petrified grandson and bent down to whisper directly in his ear. "Let me teach you once and for all what you are and who you belong to."  
  
Then he grabbed the boy's wrist and yanked him towards his workbench.  
Morty felt the air being knocked out of him as his stomach collided with the edge of the table. He wasn't given a break though as his grandfather was suddenly behind him.  
He quickly undid Morty's jeans and pushed them together with the boy's underwear down in one move. Then he lifted the brunet's shirt up and over his head.  
The clothing was then used to bind Morty's hands.  
  
What happened afterwards was all a blur of colors and pain to Morty.  
He saw the blood of his beloved family members staining the surface on that he was bent over and the bright yellow of his shirt that kept his arms immobile. Felt the familiar pain of penetration, but also a burning sensation at the small of his back.  
Morty wasn't even entirely aware as it happened, but his grandfather had marked him then. He carved the words "Grandpa's bitch" in big letters into his back.  
  
"Now everyone can see that you're my little bitch, Morty." Rick rasped and licked over the fresh cuts.  
  
Then he cackled loudly. A maniacal laugh.  
It was only broken by a loud groan as he emptied his seed inside Morty.  
Rick didn't let off the boy yet though. Again, he bent over him so that he could whisper loudly into his grandson's ear.  
  
"Listen now, you little shit and listen good! If you're gonna defy me one more time, I'm going to end you!" he threatened. "I can easily get myself a new Morty who'll actually know his place."  
  
Morty didn't answer him. He was still too much in shock of what had happened.  
The only thing that he could think about was that this was his fault.  
His mother and sister were dead and it was all his fault. Because he had told them.  
If he hadn't been so goddamn weak, if he would have been just able to deal with this himself, if he would have just kept his mouth shut, then this wouldn't have happened. They would still be alive, oblivious to what a monster Rick truly was.  
But they were dead now and it was his fault…  
  
  
From then on out even though it was unimaginable, things just got worse for Morty.  
Now he didn't even had the little sanctuary left that was eating meals together on one table with the rest of the family. There was no "rest of the family" now.  
It was only him and Rick. "Rick and Morty for one hundred years" his grandfather had once said. That prospect sounded worse than purgatory.  
  
Now, that he wasn't given even the slightest pause from Rick's continues torture, Morty started to entertain the idea of taking his own life. He even tried to do it once as he had seen an opportunity for it.  
Unfortunately, his grandfather found him too soon. He would always be around and didn't allow him to simply escape like that. The man saved his life as if it was nothing even though Morty hadn't wanted to be saved.  
  
_"You don't get to die unless I say so! Because I fucking own you!! I control you!! I'm a fucking god, don't you get that?!"_ He had started to ramble to him then.  
  
Not even death was on the boy's side. He wasn't even allowed to die on his own terms. And he didn't try again afterwards. Because there was no point.  
There was no escape from this hell.  
  
  
Things went on like that for a while and despite everything, Morty never disobeyed his grandfather again.  
In the end, things would just go worse for him if he defied Rick. If he tried to fight back or escape – no matter through which means.  
However, eventually even Morty reached his final limit. The last instance before a complete breakdown. Before he really became no more than an empty shell, a living corpse, a mere zombie that didn't think, didn't feel and only followed whatever Rick wanted like a puppet that was hanging on the strings of a puppeteer.  
And it was at one of the simplest requests that he snapped.  
  
  
"Get in the car, Morty!" Rick demanded and jumped in at the driver's side.  
  
Morty stood stock-still and didn't move a single muscle. He only looked at Rick through the windshield.  
  
"N-n-no." he stuttered, but his voice sounded calm.  
  
After the death of his mother and sister, his stutter had become abruptly ten times worse than it was before.  
  
"What was that?" Rick asked and his eyes narrowed dangerously.  
  
Despite the situation that he was in, Morty didn't feel fear.  
The heavy weight that always settled in his stomach was gone and bravery flared up in his chest – or maybe it was something else.  
The boy had no idea why he felt that way, but he stood his ground.  
  
"I-I-I said no, R-Rick!" he repeated louder this time.  
  
"You little shit…" Rick mumbled and climbed out of the car again. "You just never gonna learn, are you Morty? You're just a useless dumb little shit that doesn't value his own life. No sense of self-preservation…"  
  
As Rick slowly advanced on the brunet, he retrieved his trusty scalpel from inside his lab coat again.  
All courage left Morty at the sight and was replaced by panic.  
  
What had he just done? Why was he so stupid to defy Rick? Did he really wanted to suffer so badly?  
  
Those and similar thoughts swirled around in his head as the scientist steadily advanced on him.  
  
'No!' he yelled inside his head.  
  
He didn't want this anymore! But he also didn't want to die! He didn't just want to end like this and have another Morty take his place who would be forced to live through the same horror that he had faced!  
He couldn't let that happen!! Not to himself and not to someone else who was also basically himself!  
  
More unconsciously than anything, Morty's body moved backwards.  
However, he wasn't simply backing away to bring a distance between himself and the maniac that he was supposed to be related to. His survival instincts were finally kicking in and they were going full force.  
He quickly turned around and made a mad dash for the washing machine. There was a special setting that he put the switch to and it opened a secret panel in which many of Rick's guns were stored.  
  
The old man's eyes widened as he only now realized what the boy was up to and he dashed towards Morty, trying to stop him.  
The brunet was quicker though and grabbed one of the guns.  
Without even thinking about it, he quickly aimed and pulled the trigger.  
  
A giant hole ripped through his grandfather's chest who then dropped on the ground.  
Morty panted hard and lowered the plasma rifle that he had just used.  
Slowly he approached the scientist that laid motionless on the floor.  
  
He couldn't believe that he had done that.  
Of course, on his many adventures with Rick, he had been forced to shoot at aliens and he had taken many innocent lives, but he would have never thought that he would end up killing his own grandfather one day.  
  
Suddenly, Rick jumped up and lunged at him, but Morty's reflexes were better.  
Before the sharp blade could bury itself in his body, the boy had shot again.  
This time it blew Rick's head off.  
  
Morty dropped the gun, knowing that not even a monster like Rick would be able to get up again with his head missing.  
Wetness ran over his cheeks then and in confusion, he reached up to touch his face.  
  
Was he really crying now? He didn't understand why.  
  
His knees began to tremble and he sunk to the ground.  
That was when realization finally sank in. He was all alone now.  
No Mom, no Summer and also no Rick.  
  
And he had killed his grandfather!  
While the man may have done atrocious things to him, it still hadn't given Morty the right to just take his life.  
He was sure that he would get in trouble for that. They would sent him to prison. They would sentence him to death.  
  
Morty was ripped out of the panic attack that he didn't even realize he had when suddenly a portal opened up in the garage.  
  
"Uh. What a mess." Commented one of the Ricks that emerged from it.  
  
The men were all clad in a white uniform.  
  
  
After that, everything happened quickly.  
The Guard Ricks had apprehended Morty and brought him before the Council of Ricks.  
Of course, as a Morty he would be charged for killing a Rick, but the Council seemed to be merciful with him as they reviewed his case.  
  
"In your defense, according to our records your Rick was a complete psycho so you probably did the multiverse a favor by getting rid of him." Riq IV who was the spokesperson for the entire council announced. "So, we're willing to give you a second chance."  
  
His _second chance_ consisted of him being enrolled at Morty Academy so he would learn to become a better Morty for the new Rick that he would be assigned to.  
And that Rick happened to be Rick P-78…  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Morty finished his story with the final meeting of him and P-78.  
He was practically panting at this point and not only because he had started to cry again when he retold some of the more painful memories – like the death of his family.  
  
When had been the last time that he actually said this much?  
Morty couldn't remember.  
  
Rick, who had to listen to the entire story that was told in that horrid stutter, kept quiet.  
It worried Morty and he began to gnaw on his lower lip.  
  
"W-wha-what are y-you go-going to d-do to me n-now?" the boy loudly shared his worries. "W-wil y-you kill m-me?"  
  
Rick P-78 probably was going to do that after getting to hear and know about everything that had happened. After all, he had killed his own Morty already so why wouldn't he kill a Morty who had openly admitted to murdering his own Rick?  
  
"I will kill you—" Rick said in a dead serious tone. "—if you get the stupid idea to turn against me."  
  
Again he left the boy behind in the lab with those gravely words hanging in the air.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Morty still sat in the underground lab for a while. Rick's words were still floating through his mind while his stomach felt as if it was laden with lead.  
Seeing as there was no point in sitting around here any longer and on his own, he finally got up from the examination table and climbed up the ladder.  
As he submerged into the garage, he could see that Rick was sitting at his workbench again and was busy working on his busted gun while cursing under his breath.  
  
Deciding that it might be the better choice to avoid the enraged scientist, he quietly left.  
As he entered the kitchen, he halted as he saw the chaos.  
  
Since Rick had let everything drop as the gun exploded inside the garage, the room was still left in that exact state of untidiness.  
Fearing that it might only make his Rick even angrier if he left it like this, Morty began to clean up the mess.  
It took him a little while and just as he was done, Rick walked in.  
  
"Oh yeah. Sorry about that." He apologized since he probably remembered only now in which state he had left the kitchen behind. "I know I said I'll cook us lunch, but I have to pick up some new materials from someone on the Citadel of Ricks. We can just eat something there if you're okay with that."  
  
Morty only nodded and Rick opened a portal.  
They arrived on Centrick square in the main atrium again and Rick was immediately asked to hand over his portal gun and other weapons.  
Morty felt quite uncomfortable to be here again even if he knew that it was probably not for very long this time. However, with the Guard Ricks immediately approaching them and leading them over to one of the small booths where Rick P-78 was forced to fill out papers again, he felt like a criminal all over again. Almost like the first time that he had been brought here even though this time he wasn't cuffed.  
  
  
"C'mon. Let's go." Rick said after he was finally done with the whole bureaucratic shebang.  
  
The elder led the way to the rendezvous point that he had agreed on with the other Rick that they were supposed to meet.  
It was a simple burger joint.  
They sat down next to each other in a booth and waited for a bit.  
Not long after, another Rick slid in the booth on the opposite side of the table.  
Morty looked up and saw that another Morty was standing next to the Rick, looking bored. As the brunet threw him a glance, Morty A-22β6 looked away.  
The other Morty found that strange, but didn't comment on it.  
  
"You got the stuff?" Rick P-78 asked.  
  
"Yeah, have it right here." The other Rick answered and put a small bag on the table. "You got what I asked for?"  
  
"Sure." With that, P-78 also placed a small bag on the table.  
  
The Ricks exchanged the bags and put them back into their coats again.  
  
"Always a pleasure to do business with you, P-78." The other Rick said as he got up from his seat.  
  
He threw Morty A-22β6 an odd glance before he left with his own Morty in tow.  
The look made the brunet squirm a little and he wasn't sure what to think of it.  
  
"So? What'cha wanna eat?" P-78 asked, figuring that they could just eat lunch here.  
  
After some spluttering Morty decided on some French fries and a simple burger for his meal while Rick got himself a double cheeseburger and some chicken nuggets.  
They ate in silence again, but somehow to Morty it didn't feel as uncomfortable as before.  
Of course, he was still thinking about the words that Rick had told him:  
  
'I will kill you if you get the stupid idea to turn against me.'  
  
However, when sitting next to him and eating lunch, it suddenly didn't feel as much of a threat as it did before.  
Basically, his words meant that as long as Morty was obedient he would be safe.  
So, he'll just have to try to be a good boy and maybe P-78 would even be nice about it. After all, the man hadn't really hurt him so far and he hoped when he stayed on his good side that things would continue to be this way.  
Hopefully, he was right with his assumption…  
  
  
After they were done eating, they walked back towards the portal zone since Rick had no other business left on the Citadel.  
  
As they walked over the plaza, Morty abruptly halted.  
He blinked in surprise as he saw a Rick and a Morty. Now of course the entire Citadel was populated with Ricks and Mortys and many of them were bustling about, but those two caught his attention because they didn't act like the others.  
The two were sitting on a bench and were busy French kissing.  
  
At first, he had worried that the Rick was forcing himself on the boy, but with how eagerly the Morty responded it didn't look that way.  
  
Rick had noticed that his Morty had stopped following him and turned back around.  
Instead of asking him what was wrong he looked to where the boy was staring at and also saw the couple on the other side of the street making out.  
  
A few Ricks and Mortys who passed by them made disgusted faces. Others ignored the duo completely.  
Well, what those two did wasn't exactly illegal on the Citadel, but still frowned upon by some.  
Since the only citizens that lived on the Citadel of Ricks were solely Ricks and Mortys, it wasn't even that unusual that romantic relationships developed between some of them. May it be that they just came from a dimension where incest was not illegal and a taboo or because most moral constructs that were custom on most versions of earth were just not applying on the Citadel anymore.  
  
The laws regarding the treatment of Mortys had always been pretty loose, but while Ricks were generally free to do with their Mortys what they wanted, this specific change in the judicial system was really just done in favor of Mortys.  
The horny little bastards just had a tendency to bond with their own kin in a more than brotherly way, often enough – and also occasionally with some of the Rick-kind – and after way too many trials were both parties were perpetrators and victims at the same time, the Council was forced to make some changes in their justice system.  
  
So, now it wasn't punishable anymore to engage in sexual activities with minors. Self-cest was also otherwise never considered to be illegal before since it was done by Ricks plenty of times. And the whole incest issue was also wiped under a big rug.  
Of course, since a few Ricks would see their chance to take advantage of those legalizations there were still laws that forbade the prostitution of Mortys and (obviously) rape.  
Only as long as a Morty wouldn't actually speak up, no charges would be pressed.  
  
However, as always there were Ricks who just didn't like to play by the rules.  
Where there is a will there is a way and rumors had it that some illegal Morty brothels actually existed on the Citadel. Even if they were most likely only accessible for insiders.  
  
  
"Morty, c'mon." Rick called out to the boy who still ogled the couple as if he was in a daze.  
  
The brunet blushed and then hurried to catch up with his grandfather again.  
As they went to retrieve Rick's portal gun his thoughts still lingered on what he had just discovered.  
Up to this point, he would have never thought that something like Rick-and-Morty relationships of this kind were a thing.  
It was a concept that sounded foreign to him and yet it picked his curiosity…  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I wrote last week when I posted "The Morty-Lover" I had to take a small break from this to think about where I want to go with this story and I have a direction now even though I'm not sure if all of you are going to be on board with this. At any rate, this will have some RickxMorty some point later on, but it's not going to be Rick P-78 and Morty A-22β6 – confusing, I know, but it is as it is.


	5. A Visitor and Rick's Past

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Morty gets to know one of P-78's aquaintances and finally the other tells him about his past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Those of you who have read my other fanfiction ["The Morty-Lover"](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15468396) will surely recognized the guest appearance at the beginning of this story :)  
> And if you haven't read it then go and do that! (…though it's not really necessary for you to understand the plotline here).  
> So anyways, we have another exposition chapter here. Some of you have probably waited longer for this than the last one.  
>   
>   
> Warning: lots of character death and gore in this one! Again, if you're queasy with this sort of stuff please don't read (at least avoid the passage that is P-78's flashback).  
> 

** Second Chances AKA The Rick One For Me – Chapter 5: A Visitor and Rick's Past **

  
  
  
A few days had passed and nothing unusual had occurred between Rick P-78 and Morty A-22β6.  
They would eat meals together and most of the time the boy would assist the scientist with his projects by handing him one tool or another.  
Thankfully, Rick hadn't been working on any more dangerous weapons that could potentially explode again after he fixed and delivered the busted gun.  
  
Morty learned in that time that this Rick seemed to have specialized in chemistry.  
Of course, he didn't only brew stuff like that fire resistant salve. Some other devices that he created – just as the small arm that went awry – were all working based on special chemicals that he made.  
It was actually quite fascinating.  
  
Morty also found out that P-78 didn't usually make weapon deals – unlike A-22β6's own Rick, who had specialized in crafting all sorts of guns and was his universe's biggest arms dealer – which was probably also the reason why his gun malfunctioned the first time. The other had pointed out to him that he made that one exception because it was too much of a good offer for him to pass it up.  
  
Their time together was mostly spent in silence though and while the boy felt relatively calm throughout the day, – even when he was in the presence of a Rick – he sadly was still haunted by nightmares of his original grandfather at night.  
As things stood, they weren't talking about the boy's past or anything related to it anymore though…  
  
  
This midmorning as Rick was sitting at his workbench again and Morty stood at his side, the boy would occasionally look up at the clock.  
He was clearly nervous and fidgeting with the hem of his shirt again.  
The reason was that his grandfather had informed him that they would get a visitor today.  
It was supposed to be another Rick from dimension Q-89 and P-78 had informed him over breakfast that the guy was a bit of weirdo, but that he shouldn't worry about it.  
Needless to say that when Rick said that he shouldn't worry, Morty naturally did.  
  
Just as the clock struck 9 am, a portal opened up in the garage.  
Morty cowered and stared with wide eyes at the figure that emerged from the rip in space and time.  
  
Rick Q-89 didn't look much different than your average Rick.  
His white lab coat was sleeveless and underneath it, he wore a blue t-shirt. A piece of yellow cloth that was tied around his left upper arm drew Morty's attention to it.  
It was the same yellow as his shirt…  
  
"Hey there, P-78. Long time no see." Q-89 greeted the other Rick.  
  
"Yeah, I guess it's been a while." P-78 admitted after turning around in his chair. "You brought the parts?"  
  
"Of course, I did." The other replied and came over to hand him a little bag.  
  
P-78 opened the bag and let its contents spill on his workbench. It were tiny metallic spare parts.  
  
Picking one of the tiny pieces up and examining them the scar-eyed Rick asked, "Just how in the world do you always make these? I never get them to turn out as perfectly like this when I try myself…"  
  
"Guess I have just really talented fingers." Rick Q-89 joked and wiggled said appendages in the air.  
  
"Yeah, yeah…" Rick P-78 grumbled sarcastically in response.  
  
The other Rick's gaze finally landed on Morty A-22β6.  
Said boy could feel his heartrate accelerating even though Q-89 gave him a friendly smile.  
  
"So this is your new Morty, huh?" He kneeled down to seem less intimidating. "Hey, there little guy."  
  
"Stop flirting with him." P-78 reprimanded. "I don't want you to give him weird ideas. Don't you already have enough Mortys to take care of?"  
  
Q-89 laughed. "I wasn't trying to flirt with him, I'm just being nice. Anyways, I'm really surprised that you finally jumped over your shadow and got a new one. Hadn't really expected that from you after everything that went down with your original Morty."  
  
Morty A-22β6 perked up at that and blinked in surprise.  
Rick hadn't told him much about his original grandson other than the fact that the boy had a Goth phase and that P-78 had killed him.  
What had actually happened between those two?  
  
"Urgh, do you really have to bring this up now?" P-78 complained. "Let's just stop talking about Mortys."  
  
"I know, I know. You don't like Mortys much after what happened with yours."  
  
"And you like Mortys _too_ much."  
  
Q-89 noticed that Morty was looking with a confused and slightly frightened expression.  
  
"Ah, look what you did now, P-78. You're giving your new Morty a bad impression of me." He scolded.  
  
"I think you manage that pretty well on your own. Besides the boy is clever to steer clear of you."  
  
"Don't listen to him, Morty. I'm a nice guy. Really."  
  
The brunet blinked, unsure. Again, he fiddled his fingers before his curiosity overtook him and he opened his mouth. "U-uh-um…?"  
  
"Hmm? What is it?" Q-89 tilted his head to the side and encouraged the boy to keep going.  
  
He wasn't really fazed about A-22β6's stutter because P-78 had warned him beforehand.  
When they had talked over their interdimensional mobile phones, the scarred Rick had told him everything that he knew about the boy.  
He did that just to make sure that Q-89 wasn't going to accidentally scare him somehow. And Q-89 was grateful for that and tried to keep a comfortable distance towards the boy since Morty seemed to have developed a dislike for physical contact.  
Heck, the boy was freaking out whenever P-78 just happened to move too much into his personal space.  
  
"W-wh-what did R-Rick mean when he-he said that you-you-you like M-Mortys?" The brunet dared to ask.  
  
Q-89 didn't look offended by the question. No, he actually smiled gently at Morty.  
  
"What he meant is that I have sex with them."  
  
As he saw how the boy's eyes widened at the answer, he quickly continued before he could go into a panic attack. "You see, there're Mortys out there who really, really love their Ricks and want to be together with them. Like, not only dating, but also getting intimate with them. But as you can imagine not all of their Ricks feel the same way about them. Some of those Ricks still try to be nice about it though and make a compromise with their Mortys. The compromise is that that they still do their adventuring and all of that together without change and when the boys want intimacy they come to me for that."  
  
"You can make it sound as sappy as you want, but I doubt the boy will get it." P-78 threw in. "Well, it's probably better. Don't want him to end up being one of those little weirdos."  
  
Q-89 ignored the other Rick. "I know that the concept sounds crazy, but it's been really working out for all of those Ricks and Mortys. Well, and for me, too, I guess. So, you don't have to be scared of me, Morty. I don't ever do anything to a Morty that he hasn't asked of me."  
  
A-22β6 took a while to take that all in.  
After he thought that he got it, he slowly nodded.  
That gesture made the smile on Rick Q-89's face brighten.  
  
  
So, this Rick was also one of those who had something like a "romantic relationship" with Mortys.  
After having seen that couple making out on the Citadel of Ricks, Morty had become curious about this sort of tie. He just couldn't stop thinking about it even though he didn't really know why.  
  
It was something that he would often marvel over when he laid in bed at night, fighting to stay awake because he was too scared to fall asleep and having to face _him_ again.  
He wondered if it was actually a normal thing.  
  
Basically, those Ricks were doing the same thing to their Mortys that his Rick had done to him. The only difference was that the Mortys liked it, wanted it. And that made him question if he had actually wanted it, too. Maybe he had ask for it without realizing it. Maybe he liked it even if he always thought that he did not. Maybe he had been lying to himself the entire time, just told himself that it hurt and he hated it because he didn't want to admit to himself that he actually enjoyed it.  
But then again that couldn't have been really true. Or was it?  
  
  
Now that he had actually met one those people who engaged in such relations, he just began to wonder even more about it. He looked at this Rick and tried to compare him to his original Rick.  
Technically, they were the same – of course, every Rick was the same person and they all were his grandfather – but Q-89 was also a Rick that he knew was doing something like this to Mortys. The thought should have been scary to him, but as he looked at the other, he saw so many differences between him as his old Rick.  
  
Q-89 wasn't acting mean or degrading towards him. He was acting so nice – nicer than his Rick had ever acted. And when he looked into his eyes, he didn't see that insane glint of possessiveness. There was only a hidden sadness in them that he couldn't explain. Try as he might, he couldn't feel a hint of malice in this Rick.  
  
Morty found himself returning the smile.  
He decided that he actually like Rick Q-89. Despite the fact that he was a Rick and he should actually fear him.  
However, the man seemed to have not lied to him when he said that he was a nice guy. Morty was thinking that he really, genuinely was a nice person that wouldn't try to harm him.  
  
  
P-78 groaned as he noticed his boy's smile and slightly relaxed composure. "You've really done it now, Q-89. Didn't I tell you to stay away from my Morty and not give him any weird ideas?"  
  
"C'mon, it's not like your Morty is trying to get into my pants now. We're just being friendly with each other, right?" After the last word, Q-89 winked at Morty who blushed in return.  
  
"Okay, that's enough now." P-78 got up from his chair and grabbed a can that he shoved in the other Rick's hands. "Just take what you came here for and leave. I'm not letting you seduce my Morty."  
  
Q-89 took no offense and laughed heartily.  
It was obvious to everyone but the little Morty in the room that P-78 was getting jealous and a bit possessive.  
Well, he wouldn't blame the other. The shy little boy was quite cute after all.  
  
"I think you've got a good one, P-78." He commented as he pulled out his portal gun and dialed his home coordinates. "You made the right decision to get a new one. I can assure you that it won't be like the last time with him."  
  
Then he stepped through the portal.  
Q-89 was genuinely happy for the other.  
It would be good for P-78 after what had happened. The man needed to learn to trust in a Morty again.  
  
  
P-78 sighed as the other left with those parting words.  
Honestly, he was convinced that he wouldn't have a repeat with his new Morty.  
The boy was so shy and very obedient, but still Rick found it hard to just put all of his faith in him.  
He needed some time…  
  
The last words of Rick Q-89 made Morty also think.  
He couldn't help but wonder what had happened between Rick P-78 and his Morty.  
Especially, after all the odd things that the other Rick had mentioned.  
  
Feeling unusually brave now – probably because of the positive experience that meeting Q-89 had brought him – he dared to ask the scientist.  
  
"R-R-Rick? Coul-can you t-tell me wu-what ha-happened with you-your M-Morty?"  
  
Just like last time that he had asked, the man stayed silent.  
But Morty wasn't about to back down.  
  
"I-I-I've t-to-told you a-about m-my Rick, t-too…" he continued.  
  
P-78 sighed again.  
  
"You're right. Since you told me, I guess it's only fair that I tell you, too." He agreed.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
At first when he had reentered his daughter's life, everything was good.  
His Morty was just like every other Morty. He wore that typical yellow t-shirt and was just a cute little dork.  
Rick had actually felt happy then. After so many lonely years, he had finally found a place where he felt like he belonged.  
  
Things had been good for a long while.  
He would tinker with his inventions while his science-loving grandson would look over his shoulder and watch him work, occasionally assisting, but always full of child-like wonder and questions.  
Other times, he would go back to adventuring, exploring the multiverse and he would take his grandchildren with him. Occasionally even his daughter or on some few cases his idiotic son-in-law that he didn't really care for much, but still enough to tolerate his presence.  
  
  
Yes, everything had been perfect. But things never stay perfect for long. It was only a question of time before things that were too good to be true would turn rotten and crumble.  
Rick knew that, but still hadn't worried about it. He had grown complacent. Started taking things for granted. He became naïve enough to think that things might just stay perfect like this forever. He should have known better…  
  
  
Rick actually wondered now when it had begun.  
It wasn't like it happened abruptly. No, it all began with small, barely noticeable changes.  
  
The first thing that he had noticed was when Morty would stop wearing his bright yellow t-shirts.  
Usually Beth was the one who was shopping the clothes for him, but the boy had went out and decided to pick up an entirely new wardrobe for himself.  
From then on out, he had started to wear black hoodies.  
Even when he added accessories like leather arm cuffs or even a choker to his attire, Rick hadn't given it much thought.  
  
He figured that the boy was just in a rebellious phase.  
Rick himself had been like that, too, in his youth. After all, he had been young once like everyone else.  
With the loud music blearing from the speakers of Morty's sound system every so often, he had no doubt that this was the only thing that it was.  
  
It was nothing to worry about, he had assured Beth.  
But, oh how wrong he had been.  
  
There were also the occasional times that Morty would lock himself away in his bedroom for days.  
And while Beth may not be the best parent in the world, this behavior worried her and she consulted her father about it again.  
  
"He thinks he invented it." Rick had replied without a worry to his daughter. "Just ignore it. When he sees that he doesn't get a rise with this out of anyone, he'll grow bored of it and stop."  
  
'Ignoring it' was probably a mistake to do in this situation.  
Perhaps this was the biggest mistake that Rick ever made in his life.  
  
  
Nonetheless, even up to this day, he still didn't know why it had happened and could only ever muse what could have caused Morty to act the way that he did.  
Had he been hanging out with the wrong crowd?  
Did something happen on one of their adventures that he hadn't been aware of?  
Had Rick overdone it with one of his experiments?  
It was something that he would wonder about in the long hours of the still nights.  
Whatever it was, Rick would always blame himself for it.  
  
  
He should have actually seen it coming, but he didn't.  
So, it hit him by surprise that day.  
  
He just came back from a little trip that he made. Morty wasn't with him because the boy had still been at school when he left.  
It also wasn't such an emergency that he needed to pick the boy out of school for it.  
  
So, he had been alone when he parked the space car in the driveway.  
When he entered his workshop through the garage door, he had been still unsuspecting.  
There was nothing odd. Not a thing struck him as wrong or out of order. But he should have already noticed then.  
  
Without a care, he had tinkered with one of his inventions.  
Only hours later did he decide that he could take a break.  
Going for a snack in the form of his favorite wafer cookies and some interdimensional cable had sounded like a great idea to him.  
  
Maybe Morty would join him, too.  
The boy should have been already home even if he hadn't stopped by to greet Rick in the garage like he used to do. His grandson had grown distant lately and even though Rick would probably never admit it aloud, he was missing the little shit's presence.  
  
So, he got up and ventured into the house via the door that led to the kitchen.  
As soon as he entered the room, he halted in his steps.  
  
There on the ground laid his daughter.  
She was gutted, her intestines spilling on the tiled floor and her dead eyes were staring at the ceiling. Her mouth stood open and trash was sticking out of it.  
From the way that the front of her neck was bulging it was obvious that a lot of kitchen waste had been jammed into the oral orifice.  
The pool of blood around her had already started to dry so she was probably dead for a view hours already.  
  
Rick stood open-mouthed and looked in horror down at the sight, his hands going into his hair and grabbing onto blue locks almost hard enough to tear them out.  
Then he sunk on his knees and cradled his daughter's body.  
Tears openly rolled down his pale ashen cheeks as he wondered who could have done such a terrible thing.  
  
Who could have done something like this?  
More importantly, how could this have happened? Rick didn't understand how his security system could have failed so badly.  
  
Grief quickly was replaced by fear as the thought occurred to him that the culprit might have gotten other members of the family.  
As he stumbled into the hallway, he was greeted by Jerry.  
Or better said by his son-in-law's remains that were scattered across the carpet.  
  
While it was true that Rick had never been a big fan of the idiot that was married to his daughter, he would have never wished something like this to happen to him.  
Tearing his eyes away from the gruesome sight, he ran up the stairs.  
  
"Morty?! Summer?!" he yelled frantically on his ascend.  
  
There was no response.  
As soon as he was upstairs, he noticed that the door to the bathroom was standing wide open.  
Rick already feared the worst as he slowly approached and his assumptions were confirmed as he peeked inside.  
  
Even though the face was cut up to the point of no recognition, the mop of red hair still made it more than obvious to Rick that this was his granddaughter.  
  
Swallowing thickly, he continued his way to Morty's room.  
Even though he didn't want to see it, he had to confirm what had happened to his grandson.  
  
The door to the boy's room stood slightly ajar and there came no sounds from within the room.  
In the dead silence of the house, Rick's footsteps sounded too loud for the man's own ears to bear and he felt a cold shiver running down his back.  
  
With shaky breaths and trembling hands, he reached out to the wooden door when it suddenly swung open on its own.  
Next thing he knew was that something collided with him and he felt pain in his left eye.  
The impact made him stumble and he came to sit against the opposite wall in the hallway.  
  
With a single eye, he looked up at his attacker in shock. Rick didn't even realize that he made the picture-perfect example of what a frightened animal looked like, right at this moment.  
  
  


  
  
Morty was towering over him, a knife in his right hand. A red fluid was dropping steadily from the tip of the blade and left flecks on the carpet beneath.  
  
*drip drip* *drip drip*  
  
Rick could feel a steady flow of liquid trailing down his left cheek and he found himself unable to open his hurting eye.  
It didn't really take a genius – even though that was what Rick was – to figure out what that wetness on his cheek was or where the fresh blood from Morty's weapon came from.  
The boy got him. He had just attacked and injured him.  
  
"M-Morty! What—?!"  
  
He didn't understand what was going on.  
His grandson couldn't really have done all that.  
  
"Just hold still, Grandpa Rick and I'll make it quick." The boy said with a maniac grin and an insane glint in his eyes.  
  
Rick's eye widened as his grandson tried to strike him with the knife again.  
With reflexes honed by many years of a dangerous lifestyle, he dodged that attack and rolled to the side.  
  
"Morty! Cut it out!" he tried to bring him back to his senses.  
  
His grandson ignored his words and advanced on the scientist again.  
Left without choice, Rick dashed towards a plant pot that stood in the hallway for decoration.  
Ignoring the potted flower, he touched the wall next to it and a hidden scanner read his hand before a secret compartment in the wall opened.  
  
He reached inside the panel and retrieved a plasma gun that he had stored there for emergencies.  
And his current situation was an emergency indeed even if he would have never imagined this kind of scenario.  
  
With a steady hand, he pointed the barrel of his weapon at Morty's head. "Stop and drop the knife, Morty!"  
  
The boy did stop, but he didn't let his weapon fall the ground.  
He just stood there and calculatingly stared at Rick, the grin on his face unwavering.  
  
Rick clenched his teeth and resisted to growl. "Why did you do it, Morty? Why did you kill your own family?!"  
  
A sob escaped from the boy's lips before he suddenly burst into a fit of laughter.  
He threw his head back and guffawed loudly as if his grandfather had just told him an incredibly funny joke.  
Rick thought that the boy looked like a complete madman.  
  
Morty wiped a tear from one of his eyes as he tried to catch his breath again. "Since when do you care, Rick? Since when do you give fuck about anyone else, but yourself?"  
  
Rick's gaze morphed from anger to confusion. "What do you—?"  
  
"Doesn't really matter since I'm going to end it now!"  
  
With only those words as warning, he lunged at Rick again.  
Instincts kicking in Rick pulled the trigger and watched saucer-eyed how the blast tore through his grandson's forehead, leaving a gaping hole in its wake and revealing pink brainmass.  
As Morty tumbled to the ground, the scientist sat frozen in shock, panting heavily.  
  
He had killed him… He had just killed his Morty – his very own grandson.  
  
His right arm sunk and the plasma blaster scattered on the ground as this realization sunk fully in.  
He hadn't meant to do it, but he had been left no choice.  
It was him or Morty.  
  
Even though, he only did it in self-defense, Rick deeply regretted to have done that.  
He felt really bad for killing his own Morty.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
"So, yeah. That's also the story how I lost my left eye and got that scar." Rick motioned towards the fake orb with the blue glowing dot. "I got this prosthetic from Q-89. The guy's just really good with small and detailed things."  
  
He left out that ever since then he added the gun holsters to his outfit and made sure to always have a weapon on hand, too.  
  
  
Morty was speechless.  
He really had no idea…  
  
After he digested everything that Rick had told him, the boy suddenly realized that they weren't so different from each other.  
Their past was so similar with the fact that their entire family had been murdered and they had been betrayed by the person that they loved the most.  
  
The brunet didn't even need to ask why Rick had held off on getting a new Morty for so long.  
It was easy enough to imagine that ever since those events, the old man was weary around Mortys.  
  
This did leave open the question why P-78 did finally change his mind and picked up A-22β6, but Morty thought that he might have the answer for that, too.  
It was most likely because Rick was feeling lonely, being all on his own again after getting to know what living together with a family was like.  
And the boy couldn't blame him for it.  
  
Morty stepped towards Rick who responded with a questioning gaze, but didn't stop the boy.  
Tentatively, the brunet reached out with one hand and gently stroked over the scarred cheek.  
  
It was the first time that Morty deliberately touched Rick.  
Sure, there was the time at the shooting range where Rick had pulled him over and helped him take aim and also the other time when Morty had been passed out and had been carried by Rick to his lab (even though he couldn't possibly remember that), but those times the elder was the one who initiated the contact.  
  
Rick didn't flinch away from the touch, but he quietly released a breath that he must have been holding. The faintest traces of a smile began to play on his lips from the soft and warm feeling.  
  
  
They both needed to learn to trust again. Maybe they could try to do it together…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since we know P-78's specialty now I feel that we should nickname him "Chemist Rick" or something like that… anyone?  
> At any rate, I'm glad that we have all cards on the table now so we can finally progress with Rick's and Morty's relationship ^_^  
> (And sorry that the fanart looks so horrible, but I really wanted a visual for that scene.)


	6. Progress and Curiosity

** Second Chances AKA The Rick One For Me – Chapter 6: Progress and Curiosity **

  
  
  
After opening up to each other both Rick and Morty had been less tense in the presence of the other.  
It was as if the invisible barrier that had always stood between them finally dissolved.  
  
Of course, that didn't mean that the world was suddenly all giggles and sunshine.  
It was a slow progress for them especially since Rick still had to get reacquainted with sharing his home with someone.  
The duo knew that they could only make baby steps, but as long as they were willing to work this out together, they were convinced that they would make it.  
  
Though they honestly haven't talked about this openly, they wanted to believe that the other was thinking alike.  
Because of their lack of communication, things had been mostly staying the same though.  
That lasted until one day when Rick decided to give them both a little break from their boring everyday life.  
  
  
"Hey, Morty. How about we go to Blips and Chitz today?" Rick's question broke the silence that hung over the table as both ate their breakfast.  
  
Morty looked up in surprise, his spoon that was laden with cereal and milk stopping in midair.  
He racked his brain because the name sounded familiar, but didn't bring up any pictures of any location that he had ever been to.  
Then it hit him as he remembered that he had heard other Mortys at the academy talking about that place. Their Ricks had taken them there sometimes and it was supposed to be like an arcade with all sorts of crazy video games.  
  
It sounded exciting and so Morty nodded enthusiastically before he finally resumed eating and shoved the dripping spoon into his mouth.  
  
Rick smiled satisfied. "Okay. Then let's leave right after we're done eating."  
  
  
True to his word, they got into Rick's space car right after and were on their way to the galaxy's greatest arcade.  
Morty watched in wonder as they approached the red planet that looked as if it was glowing which was probably only because of all the flashy neon signs though. His fascination still didn't falter as they landed on the overfilled parking lot and surprisingly still got a free spot.  
With timid steps, he left the spacecraft and followed Rick who went straight towards the entrance of the building that was Blips and Chitz.  
  
Noticing how his grandson was staring with big eyes and in amazement at everything, he asked. "This the first time you've been here?"  
  
Morty shrunk a little in himself in embarrassment, figuring that he probably must look like an idiot right now if the other was able to notice it so easily but nodded nonetheless.  
Rick looked a little surprised that it really was the boy's first time here, but then he remembered what the boy had told him about his original grandfather so he probably should have expected that. It was just confusing because to his knowledge almost every Rick visited Blips and Chitz with their Morty at least at one point. Even he had done this with his original grandson in the past.  
  
He shook his head to get rid of the memories and tried not to think about how weird it felt to come to this place again with his new Morty.  
After all, they were here to have some fun and leave behind the bad memories even if it would be only for a few hours.  
  
"W-welcome to Blips and Chitz then. The best place in the universe. It's got beer, games, prices and you can never tell what time it is." Rick introduced and decided to give the boy a little tour of the place.  
  
With big eyes, flaring red cheeks and a racing heart Morty let Rick led him around and show him some of the best games that the place had to offer. Honestly, he felt a bit uncomfortable since it was quite crowded, but he didn't want to let this ruin his day. After all, it wasn't every day that they did something nice like this together even if P-78 was treating him very nicely in comparison to what Morty was used to from his previous Rick.  
  
Being generous today, Rick decided to let Morty pick a game that they should play. However, the boy seemed to be overwhelmed with such an easy decision already as he nervously looked around and was unsure which one to pick.  
Eventually he decided on a game that they could both play together. It was some kind of space shooter just that their space ships actually looked like vegetables and the enemies looked like animals.  
  
Despite the weird design choice, the game was actually fun and Rick's and Morty's teamwork was splendid. After a few hours of playing without a break, they had set a new high score.  
Morty made a little jump in joy. However, Rick was so elated about their achievement that he hugged the boy.  
  
"Woohoo! You really gunned them down like a pro! Talk about perfect aim, am I right Morty?!"  
  
Morty immediately squeaked in shock and stiffened. Only then did Rick realize what he did or better said whom he was with. For a moment, he had completely forgotten that this wasn't his old Morty.  
  
"S-sorry." The elder apologized as he quickly let go of the brunet again.  
  
"N-no, I-I-I am so-sorry." Morty also apologized, feeling stupid for his reaction.  
  
Rick wanted to mentally beat himself up. Of course, after what the boy had been through he'd have some traumas and he shouldn't be surprised that Morty was afraid of physical contact – especially if it came from Rick. And it wasn't like he hadn't noticed this before even if he hadn't commented about it.  
It was so stupid of him to forget that just because he had been caught up in the moment.  
  
Both feeling awkward about the situation, Rick suggested they should pick out another game and Morty agreed.  
They continued to play many different games, took a break in between to eat lunch in the food court that was also inside the building and then they had fun together for the rest of the afternoon.  
  
However, the entire time Rick kept a close eye on his grandson. It was obvious that the boy was nervous being surrounded by so many people—well, aliens, but it probably didn't matter what species it was. Despite that, Morty smiled and was willing to spend more time with Rick here.  
  
And while that was certainly admirable, Rick couldn't stop thinking about what to do about it. Of course, the boy needed help and Rick had already made the resolve that he wanted to do something to make it better and let Morty be just like any other normal and cheerful Morty again.  
There was enough to work on as it was – not only the fear of touch, but also that horrible stutter.  
  
Not that Rick himself didn't had flaws and stuff to work out. It wasn't exactly a fear that he had of the boy – that sounded nonsensical to Rick's ears – but he had trouble trusting Morty.  
When they were at home, he always had that paranoia that he always needed to know where exactly the boy was at any given moment and he also felt uncomfortable having his back turned towards the brunet even though he knew that Morty wouldn't dare to attack him.  
  
Despite the knowledge that the boy had killed his own Rick, he also knew that it was only out of self-defense and after everything that he had been through it was more than understandable. Heck, even the Council of Ricks felt a little ounce of sympathy and showed it by not punishing the boy, but putting him in one of their reassignment programs.  
  
The circumstances hadn't been really far off from his own.  
  
  
"I-i-is everything o-okay, R-Rick?" Morty asked as he had noticed that the other began to space out.  
  
"Huh?" Rick blinked in confusion as he was suddenly brought out of his thoughts. "Yeah, everything's great." He put on a fake smile to seem more convincing.  
  
Morty looked doubtfully at him but didn't dare to question the scientist any further.  
Rick suppressed a sigh as he wondered, if there even was anything that he could do to help. For all he knew they would actually need to seek out a professional even if his opinion on psychologists and therapists wasn't the greatest.  
  


* * *

  
  
  
The fly home was spent in silence and Rick noticed how Morty's eyes were getting droopy and his head would dip a little every once in a while as he fought against nodding off. It put a smile on the scientist's face because the sight was actually kind of cute.  
Seems like the day that they had spent at the planetary arcade had worn the boy out.  
  
Rick didn't bother waking Morty after the boy finally fell asleep in the passenger seat.  
The only sounds inside the space-travelling vehicle were the gentle humming of the dark matter engine and the brunet's soft breathing. It wasn't unpleasant to Rick's ears so he didn't bother putting on some music.  
  
After a while, a new sound began to join in though.  
He looked over to Morty who had started to whimper and twitch in his sleep.  
It didn't take a genius to figure out that the boy was having a nightmare. Rick remembered the last time that Morty had been dreaming badly in his presence. Last time he had witnessed what had happened inside the boy's dreamscape thanks to his machine.  
  
That psychotic alternate version of himself had been horribly torturing Morty. It was bad enough that according to the boy this had went down in the past for real, but to think that he had to relive that in his dreams, too…  
Did he always have those nightmares?  
  
As Morty began to cry and stuttered out pitiful 'no's, Rick couldn't take it anymore.

He reached over and gently tried to shake the brunet awake.  
  
"Hey Morty, wake up."  
  
It took a while and a few tries before the boy finally woke up.  
He gasped and panted as he looked around in disorientation, seemingly not knowing where he was right now. Rick had made sure to pull his hand away again the moment that Morty shot up in his seat as he awoke.  
  
The boy calmed down again as he recognized the interior of the space car and noticed that the Rick that sat beside him was P-78.  
  
"Hey, y-you okay there?" Rick asked as disinterested as possible, facing ahead but his eyes locking on Morty.  
  
"I-I-I'm fine. S-so-sorry if I bo-bothered y-you." The boy apologized, thinking that he had probably annoyed Rick, as he must have made noises in his sleep.  
  
He rubbed with the sleeve of his shirt over his face as he noticed that it was wet with tears, feeling ashamed that Rick had seen him like this.  
Silence reigned for a while inside the ship before the elder eventually broke it.  
  
"D-do you have nightmares often?"  
  
The boy nodded wordlessly.  
  
"A-always." He eventually replied timidly.  
  
'Always?!' Rick thought stunned.  
  
More silence followed.  
Rick cleared his throat.  
  
"I could-I could help you with that." He offered charily. "Hel-help get rid of the nightmares, I mean."  
  
Again, only the soft humming sound of machinery permeated the air.  
  
"H-how?" Morty had thought about the offer and was curious now.  
  
"Well, I have this invention. I call it 'dream inceptors'. A lot of Ricks made those at one point for one reason or another. Anyways, its purpose is to incept a person's thoughts by entering into their dream." The scientist explained. "I-I-I could also use it to help with your nightmare. You-you know, just kick whatever monster that's plaguing you in your dreams' butt."  
  
He didn't need to tell the boy that he knew what _monster_ exactly was haunting him.  
Morty looked like he was contemplating about it again.  
  
Eventually he decided. "O-okay."  
  
Rick smiled, glad that he found at least one of the boy's problems that he could work on and hopefully get rid off.  
  


* * *

  
  
  
On their way home, they decided that they would try it out tonight. No need to stall anymore Rick figured.  
The evening was spent with eating dinner together, a bit more tinkering in the garage and some relaxing in front of the TV before Morty was tired enough that he wanted to go to bed.  
  
  
Together the duo trudged up the stairs and made their way to Morty's room.  
Rick was a bit reluctant to follow Morty inside, halting in front of the doorway. His scar throbbed a little and the scientist's single biological eye started to glaze over as he probably remembered that one evening as he had been attacked here by his grandson.  
Quickly he shook himself out of those thoughts and stepped inside the room, noticing then for the first time that Morty hadn't changed anything inside it from the way that Rick had prepared it for him. The last time that Rick was inside the room, he had been too worried over A-22β6 who had a panic attack and was hyperventilating to notice it.  
  
Rick took a seat in the chair at Morty's desk as the boy changed out if his clothes and into his pajamas.  
  
"Are you sure that it's okay for me to stay here until you fall asleep?" The scientist asked as Morty crawled into his bed.  
  
"I-It-It's o-okay." The boy reassured him.  
  
Morty really didn't mind and was okay with it. After all, Rick wanted to help him so he trusted his grandfather enough that he wouldn't do anything to him while he was about to drift off.  
  
Rick kept his distance and still sat on the chair while he waited for his grandson to finally fall asleep. His gaze wandered around the room as time passed.  
After he noticed that the other's breath had evened out, he dared to approach the bed.  
He could tell that the boy had entered REM sleep and so everything was set for him to start now.  
  
He put one dream inceptor inside Morty's ear and placed one in his own before he sat down at the foot of the bed and activated the machine, which knocked him immediately unconsciousness.  
  
  
  
Morty was surrounded by nothing but darkness.  
  
"R-Rick?" he called out as he looked around in search for the other.  
  
"I'm right here, Morty."  
  
As he heard the voice behind him, Morty turned around with a bright smile on his face, glad that Rick really was here and he wouldn't have to face his nightmare alone.  
However, his face quickly fell again because the Rick that stood before him now wasn't P-78 but his first grandfather.  
  
"What, Morty? Were you expecting someone else?" Rick A-22β6 mocked with an evil grin.  
  
The boy shook his head and slowly walked backwards, tears pricking the corners of his eyes. Rick had said that he would be here. He had said that he would help him. Morty had really thought that he would come here and protect him from this.  
  
The scientist's sadistic grin only widened as he quickly snatched onto the yellow shirt of the slowly retreating boy and pulled him closer towards his body. With a slimy tongue, he licked over the brunet's cheek and caught the first teardrop that had started to spill.  
  
"Hmm~ Have I ever told you how delicious your tears taste?" he whispered directly into Morty's ear who shuddered from feeling the breath ghosting over his ear and neck.  
  
Oh god! He didn't want this! Not again! When would it ever be enough for Rick? When would his grandfather finally stop tormenting him?  
  
"Didn't someone ever tell you that it's cowardly to bully weak and defenseless little boys?" A voice which sounded exactly like Rick's suddenly spoke up.  
  
A-22β6 scoffed and turned to look at the person that had spoken – P-78. "What the fuck do you want? This is my turf and my Morty so I can do to him whatever the hell I want."  
  
"Newsflash for you. That's my Morty now so I do have a say in this." P-78 replied nonplussed and crossed his arms over his chest.  
  
A-22β6 sneered and let the boy drop on the ground who hurried to put a distance between himself and the psychopathic Rick.  
  
"Oh, you really wanna know it now, don't you?" A-22β6 asked as he fully faced his opponent.  
  
P-78 uncrossed his arms again and looked dead serious.  
Then as if an agreed signal fell, the Ricks started to lunge at each other at the same time.  
  
Morty watched in equal horror and fascination as his two grandfathers exchanged blows, neither willing to give the other the upper hand.  
However, one of them would have to go down eventually.  
To Morty's terror, it was P-78, who ended up on the ground with the other above him, at A-22β6's mercy now.  
  
"N-NO!!" the boy called out horrified. "L-le-let go o-of P-78!"  
  
"Or what, Morty?" his nightmare asked back.  
  
That was a good question. The only thing that Morty could do right now was stand there and only watch things unfold. He was powerless.  
  
As if he was reading Morty's mind, P-78 shouted. "Morty! This is your dream! You have the control here! You can dream up anything that you want!"  
  
What P-78 said made sense.  
Deciding to try it out, Morty closed his eyes and concentrated.  
Out of thin air, a gun started to materialize inside his hand. It looked exactly like the one that Rick P-78 had made.  
  
With shaking hands, he pointed the barrel at the nightmare that was overpowering his current grandfather.  
  
'Just like at the shooting range…' P-78 thought as he took notice of the unsteady grip and the trembles.  
  
Back then, it had been obvious to him that the boy wouldn't be able to shoot and even if he had, he might have hit anything else but certainly not the target.  
This wasn't good…  
  
"Oh, what's that, Morty? You wanna kill Grampa again? Just do it! Let's see if you little pussy can really do it again!" A-22β6 began to mock the boy.  
  
Morty swallowed heavily and the tremors in his body began to worsen.  
  
His nightmare noticed this and cackled loudly. "Doesn't really matter anyway! You can't kill me, moron! I'm practically a god in this realm! I'm like Freddy Kruger—no, like motherfucking Morpheus! You can't ever get rid of me!" he added between his maniacal laughter.  
  
Morty took a deep breath and wrapped his fingers tighter around the handle and the trigger. "W-well, we wo-won't know f-for s-su-sure if I don't tr-try." He stuttered back.  
  
However, his hands were still quivering.  
A-22β6 looked unamused and with a swift movement, he stood up and dragged P-78 with him. He spun the other Rick around and held him in front of his body like a shield, one arm wrapped around his neck and the other hand keeping P-78's arms in a vice-like grip.  
  
"C'mon, dipshit! Why not shoot both of us then and get rid of all of your problems at once?!" A-22β6 said darkly. "One shot of that gun should be enough to take us both out!"  
  
Morty's eyes widened and P-78 started to panic.  
The scientist with the artificial eye began to worry that the boy might really shoot them both and he hadn't told Morty beforehand that if he died within the dream he would also die in the waking world.  
  
"Why don't you just do it? You won't have a Rick anymore and also no worries. Doesn't that sound great? That's exactly what you little piece of shit want, isn't it?" the nightmare continued to provoke him.  
  
Morty frowned as he looked at P-78 who stared back at him with a horrified expression. His right eye was black and started to swell, one cheek was bruised, blood was dripping from his nose and his hair was disheveled.  
No, the boy certainly didn't want to shoot P-78, but he didn't know what to do right now.  
  
"What's taking you so long? Too much of a pussy to do it, you little shit stain?" A-22β6 still continued to mock.  
  
Morty kept racking his brain for a solution without hurting his Rick.  
Suddenly he remembered something and looked only at P-78, completely ignoring the words of the nightmare version of his grandfather.  
  
"Y-y-you said tha-that I have a-a-a really go-good aim, R-Rick…"  
  
P-78 realized that he indeed did say something like that. It was on this very day when they had been playing the space shooter at Blips and Chitz.  
Rick visibly began to calm and Morty could see that the other was trusting him with whatever he was going to do.  
  
The boy steadied the gun with both of his hands, which had stopped trembling and took proper aim now.  
A-22β6 still threw degrading words at him, not believing that his grandson would really have the guts to pull through with this – until Morty shot. The nightmare was taken out with a single headshot and dropped on the ground.  
  
Morty lowered the gun and walked over to P-78, both looking down at the unmoving corpse.  
  
"D-do y-you think th-that h-he was r-right a-and will co-come ba-back?"  
  
"Don't know." Rick replied dryly. "But if he does I'll just come back here each night until he's gone for good."  
  
Rick's words really warmed Morty and the boy was so deeply touched by it that he started to cry. This startled P-78, who didn't understand that it were tears of joy that streamed down the brunet's cheeks this time.  
  
"A-are you okay, Morty?" he asked confused.  
  
The boy nodded and explained, "I-I-I'm just gl-glad tha-that you a-are here fo-for m-me."  
  
Reluctantly he went up to Rick to give the other a hug, however his body was stiff and both felt awkward at the moment – P-78 only because Morty was so obviously uncomfortable with it.  
After a moment, the boy let go again and Rick cleared his throat once more.  
  
Without looking the boy in the eyes, the elder made another offer. "Should we-should we try to work on this, too?" He rubbed the back off his neck and made gestures with his hands as he elaborated, "I-I mean try to make you more comfortable with physical contact again?"  
  
Morty only blinked for a moment but agreed on it. "S-sure. I-I-I wo-would like tha-that."  
  
The boy really wanted to become better and not feel as uncomfortable around his new Rick anymore. So, it was decided.  
P-78 only hoped that he would really be able to help the boy with this problem…  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Again, the duo decided that they should begin to start with improving Morty's tolerance for physical body contact right on the next day. Morty actually felt more energetic than ever as he finally got a proper night's rest and so he was ready and eager to follow with whatever Rick had planned for the day.  
  
Of course, seeing how the boy reacted from something as simple and comforting as a hug, Rick knew that he had to start this out slow. The "throwing Morty in at the deep end" method that most Ricks believed in and usually used on their Mortys wouldn't work positively on this sensitive little guy. After all this wasn't like a band aid that you could quickly rip off and then be done with it.  
And while empathy was usually not most Ricks' strength, P-78 was willing to take baby steps in this endeavor.  
  
So, for the start he decided on something easy that Morty should be able to handle even in his current state.  
Morty looked with surprise written all over his face at the new arrangement that Rick had made.  
  
  
They had just finished with breakfast and at Morty's question what they're going to do today Rick had simply answered that he had to finish a project and the boy would assist him. The brunet had felt a bit disappointed since the scientist had just told him before breakfast that they would start on his problem today, but followed him obediently to the garage anyways.  
  
Once there, it was when the surprise hit him.  
Rick had placed another chair right next to his at the workbench.  
  
"From today on you're going to sit in this chair when you assist me with my work." Rick said as he pointed to the second chair.  
  
After they sat down, Morty noticed that there was little space between them now and it made him feel a bit uncomfortable again.  
  
'But that's the point,' the boy told himself. 'He wants me to sit this close to him so I can get used to it.'  
  
So pulling himself together Morty tried to bear it as good as he could.  
Rick kept a watchful eye on the boy while also working on his newest invention. Occasionally their elbows would touch or their arms would brush against each other's, which were the times that Morty looked a lot more troubled and would gulp or began to breathe more heavily as if he was about start to hyperventilating.  
However, the times when he would have to get up to bring Rick an item that was located on one of the shelves, Morty would eagerly jump up and look relieved. Those times were like a breather for him.  
  
Despite everything, the brunet kept holding on and didn't complain. Of course, if Morty would have said that he couldn't handle it anymore or would have showed obvious signs that it was too much for him, Rick would have stopped this. But there was no need for that.  
  
  
They kept going with this form of "training" for the next days and when Rick decided that Morty was handling it well enough, he would slowly add another step.  
For example when he asked the boy to hand him something:  
  
"Morty, hand me the screwdriver. The Philips head."  
  
The boy obediently reached across the workbench and picked up the requested item.  
As he held it out to Rick, there was no reaction from the scientist. He very obviously ignored the tool that Morty held out to him and deliberately didn't take it.  
The boy looked in confusion at his grandfather's calloused palm as he still held up his hand and waited, wondering what he was supposed to do now.  
  
Getting an idea, Morty finally placed the screwdriver into the open palm, his fingers brushing against the other's hand in the process as Rick's fingers closed around the tool.  
  
"Thank you." Rick replied and continued to tinker on his invention.  
  
This was exactly what Morty was supposed to do.  
  
  
Like this, Rick kept increasing the difficulty over the time adding one more task on top of the other and it did seem to help little by little.  
The boy was growing gradually less uncomfortable around Rick even daring to sit a bit closer to him on the couch when they were watching TV in the evening.  
  
  
"Okay, Morty. Think you're ready for something bigger today?" Rick asked almost out of the blue.  
  
The boy took a deep shaky breath before he nodded, not sure what Rick would surprise him with this time but willing to try it anyways. His eyes widened as his grandfather opened his arms.  
It was very obvious what this was supposed to be. Rick wanted to give him a hug.  
  
Despite all the improvement that they made over the last days this still felt like a big step for Morty.  
Reluctantly he approached the other and lifted his arms to put them around Rick's middle. He shivered as he pressed closer against his grandfather's torso, however it started to turn into heavy trembling as soon as the scientist places his arms around his back.  
  
Noticing this, Rick instantly let go of the boy again and Morty took a few steps back.  
  
"S-sorry." He mumbled, seeing, as this hadn't went so well.  
  
"No, it's okay. No need to rush it." Rick replied and tried to cheer his grandson up. "I know this is a really big step and it was probably still a bit too soon for that. But just look at how far you already made it."  
  
Morty nodded but couldn't look Rick in the eyes. He fiddled with the hem of his shirt and a fine blush was dusting his cheeks, but he had to admit that it wasn't entirely out of embarrassment for failing.  
Actually, the close contact brought back thoughts and memories that he hadn't been thinking about for a while now.  
  
"Hey, don't take it so hard. One day you'll manage this, too." Rick tried to encourage him as he saw that the boy fiddled around with his yellow shirt and was still a bit red in the face.  
  
"I-I know. I'm no-not w-wo-worrying that m-much a-about it." Morty replied with a smile but still couldn't look at his grandfather.  
  
This puzzled Rick. If the boy wasn't acting like that because of the failed hug then what was he so embarrassed about all of a sudden?  
  
"Okay, what is it, Morty?" he asked, not feeling like wasting time trying to figure it out on his own.  
  
"I-I-It's n-no-nothing!" the boy replied a bit too hastily and with an increased stutter.  
  
"Cut the bullshit. Obviously it's not nothing so just spilled it, Morty." The elder was nonplussed.  
  
"U-um… I-I-I was st-still w-wondering about t-that R-Rick a-and M-Morty a-at the Citadel a-and about what R-Rick Q-89 i-is doing…"  
  
"What? You're still thinking about that?" Rick sighed.  
  
"U-um… do-does that ha-happen o-often?"  
  
"I don't have any statistics how many Ricks and their Mortys out of all the Ricks and Mortys that exist have that kind of relationship if that's what you're asking."  
  
At his Mortys disappointed expression, he continued. "But I guess it happens quite often."  
  
Morty looked in wonderment at the man. "Ha-have y-you…?"  
  
Rick's eyes widened. "What?! No! Never!"  
  
He was probably being a bit too defense about the topic, but he honestly hadn't thought about his own Morty in that way ever.  
  
The boy had shrunk a little as his grandfather became louder, but still didn't back down. "W-why do y-you think tha-that happens?"  
  
The scientist softly groaned under his breath. "Look, Morty. Love is just a chemical reaction and-and it's something that just happens. Sometimes it hits you right when you meet someone for the first time. And other times it happens after you spend a shitload of time together with someone, which is usually the case with Ricks and their Mortys. Though something like that shouldn't usually happen within the family, I guess it's because we Ricks enter into your Mortys' lives at such a late time. I-I don't know, really…"  
  
Morty stared at the ground, looking like he was deep in thought about what the elder had just explained to him.  
It was kind of a sensitive topic and Rick P-78 was probably not the right person to talk to about something like this.  
  
"Do you-do you want to talk with someone about this who knows more about it?"  
  
Morty perked up at the offer but looked unsure.  
  
"I could… I could call Q-89 and ask if he's got some time for you. You know, just to talk." He reluctantly continued.  
  
The boy bit his lower lip as he was silently contemplating.  
  
Rick felt more nervous than he should as he waited for an answer.  
Heck, he was the one who came up with this because he felt uncomfortable about talking with his grandson about such kind of relationships in the first place so he really had no right to be scared now that Morty might actually agree to the offer!  
  
After a long moment of absolute silence in the garage, the boy finally made his decision.  
  
"O-okay." He reinforced the confirmation with a small nod of his head.  
  
The older released the breath that he had been holding and his face fell slightly. "Okay. I-I call him and see when he's got time…"  
  
Morty felt a little bad as he saw Rick's face. He didn't want to upset his grandpa, but on the other hand he was still curious and needed some answers.  
  
As promised, P-78 scrolled through the address book on his phone for the other Rick's number and then called him to arrange a meeting.  
He reminded himself that he did that for the boy's sake.  
  
It'll be fine. Morty was only going talk to Rick Q-89.  
_They would only talk…  
_


	7. Another Rick's Healing Touch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Morty and Rick Q-89 have a talk...and end up doing a bit more than just talking.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: cringy smut scene is cringy, but it is intentionally written that way. Might also feel a tad bit non-con-y.

** Second Chances AKA The Rick One For Me – Chapter 7: Another Rick's Healing Touch **

  
  
  
Morty's heart was pounding heavily inside his chest as a swirling green portal opened in the garage. Even though he knew that he didn't have to be scared of Q-89 he still had this phobia of Ricks. Aside from that, the boy also felt a little weird being around others, seeing as he usually was only around P-78 and had barely any contact with anyone else other than when they would go and do grocery shopping together or made a delivery to one of Rick's clients.  
  
Rick Q-89 looked as friendly as ever as he stepped into dimension P-78.  
  
"Hey, P-78!" He greeted his acquaintance and longtime friend. "Hi there, Morty."  
  
"H-hi…" Morty mumbled and lifted his hand to slightly wave in greeting.  
  
The friendly Rick's smile broadened as he look at the shy boy. Like the last time that they had met, he bent down to be on the same eye-level as the brunet and held out a hand to him.  
Reluctantly Morty got closer and took the offered hand.  
  
Rick P-78 wasn't sure what to think of the whole scene but kept silent. However, he didn't look too happy at the moment.  
He shouldn't worry so much though because he knew that Q-89 could be trusted and his Morty would be in safe hands with the other scientist.  
  
"I'll bring him back when we're done talking or he just wants to go home." The other Rick said as he looked directly at P-78.  
  
"Sure. Just try to make it before dinner." Rick P-78 replied and made a short nod with his head before spinning around in his chair to face his workbench again.  
  
He pointedly ignored the two as he took a large gulp from a bottle, which was clearly filled with some sort of alien liquor before he focused on his current project. Though, it was obvious to Q-89 that he was just trying to distract himself with his work.  
  
Morty looked a bit worriedly at his Rick's quick dismissal and even more about the fact that the other was straight on his way to get blackout drunk. While that was a habit that he knew from his previous Rick, P-78 had actually refrained from heavy consummation of alcohol in all the time that Morty had been here.  
Sure, he certainly did sip a little bit here and there, but never enough to get completely drunk. Morty could only explain that with Rick not wanting to be inebriated enough to become completely defenseless and vulnerable. At any rate, he had began to steadily take larger gulps of the alien liquid since they started to wait on Q-89's arrival.  
  
His grandfather's unusual behavior made him wonder once more if he made the wrong choice by agreeing to have this talk with the other Rick.  
He couldn't ponder about it for long as suddenly another portal opened and Q-89, who had stood up again and still held his portal gun in his free hand, began to lightly tug on the boy's with his other hand.  
  
"Let's go?" he asked Morty as if wanting to make sure that the boy really wanted this.  
  
Instead of answering, the brunet nodded and then followed Q-89 through the portal.  
The garage that they ended up in looked a lot like the one that they just came from, but Morty instantly noticed that many of the devices that stood on the shelves were very different from the ones that he had seen in dimension P-78. They are not only different but they looked really small and intricate in comparison.  
Didn't his new Rick mention once that Q-89 was good with working on miniature technology?  
  
"Do you want to talk here?" Rick asked.  
  
"U-um…" Morty fidgeted and looked around, not sure, if this was a good place for it.  
  
Then again, where else should they talk?  
  
As if to answer his unspoken question, the other added, "We could also move this to somewhere more comfy. If you're okay with it, we could go to my room."  
  
The boy nodded dumbly.  
As Rick led him through the house, Morty looked with big eyes at his surroundings, trying to catch the differences between their dimensions.  
  
"Beth is at work so we're the only ones at home. In case you were wondering." Q-89 said as he noticed the boy gazing around.  
  
Again, Morty only nodded. So, his mom was still alive in this dimension? What was with the rest of the family though?  
Even though he wondered about that, he didn't dare to ask Rick. At least not yet anyways.  
  
As they entered Rick's room, he guided Morty to sit on his cot while sitting next to him.  
  
"So, shoot away. You're Rick already told me what topic you wanted to talk about, so just ask what's on your mind." Q-89 opened up the discussion.  
  
Again, the boy fidgeted, not entirely sure where to start.  
Eventually he took a deep breath and just decided to commence from the very beginning.  
  
"W-well, on the Ci-Citadel o-of R-R-Ricks, I ha-had seen a-a R-R-Rick and a M-Morty, who w-we-were…um…ki-kissing. Be-before that I-I-I didn't even kno-know that the-they…w-we co-could be in sa-such relationships…"  
  
Morty needed to take another deep breath and was glad to find that Q-89 was smiling at him encouragingly.  
This man was a really patient Rick, he figured.  
  
"S-so, I wa-was wondering ho-how that e-even ha-happens."  
  
Rick chuckled a little at the innocent question. "Love is very mysterious, Morty. It's not something that can be easily explained, not even with science. I guess it's just something that happens. Mortys falling in love with their Ricks or Ricks falling in love with their Mortys and sometimes both falling in love with each other…"  
  
Honestly, Rick hadn't done any research on the topic of why it happened so often. The Westermarck Effect could be probably used to explain some of it away.  
The fact that Ricks lacked a moral compass may be another one.  
Just spending time together, exploring the beautiful and vast universe and feeling the adrenaline rush of a dangerous adventure together may also be factors.  
There may even be other reasons for why it was as it was.  
However, the biggest question here was, if that even mattered.  
  
"A-are you a-and your M-Morty in such a re-relationship, t-too?" Morty dared to ask.  
  
There it was again. Even after all this time, it was still a sensitive topic for Q-89.

His face fell and he looked away from the boy for a moment.  
  
Morty worried that he had asked the wrong question and made Rick upset now, but the man only sighed before he began to explain.  
  
"I loved my Morty like that, but we were never together. Actually, he knew about my feelings because I confessed to him but he just didn't return them. Still he didn't mind and we just continued on like normally until the day that he died…"  
  
The brunet's eyes widened as he heard that. "Wha-what ha-happened?" His question was no more than a whisper.  
  
"He committed suicide. Slit his wrists in the bathtub." Rick's eyes turned glassy as the memories came back to him. Before Morty had the chance to ask why he did it, Q-89 continued, "It was after I raped him. **Because** I raped him."  
  
Morty inched a little away from him as he heard that. Actually, he couldn't believe that Q-89 did something like that. He had seemed like such a nice Rick.  
His eyes had turned big with fear as he gazed at the man that did the same horrible thing to his own Morty that A-22β6's grandfather had done to him.  
  
Noticing the other's reaction, Rick quickly tried to calm the boy down again before he could work himself into a panic attack. "I was drunk back then! Totally wasted! I know that's no excuse for what I did, but I haven't touched any alcohol or drugs ever since then."  
  
Morty calmed the slightest bit down again. Now that the other mentioned it, the smell of alcohol was really absent from him unlike it had been the case with his original Rick or even P-78 who still drank less than probably most Ricks.  
  
"You have no idea how horrible I feel about that and I'll never be able to forgive myself for the terrible thing that I have done to him." He absentmindedly stroked over the yellow cloth that was tied around his left biceps. "But I won't ever do something like that to a Morty – to anyone – ever again. So, please don't be scared of me."  
  
"I-it-it's okay. I ju-just…"  
  
"I know what you've been through, Morty." The boy looked up to him in surprise now. "P-78 had told me everything. Well, the most important things anyways, like what your original Rick had done to you. And before you get upset that he told me that personal stuff, he only did it because he wanted to make sure that I don't accidentally scare you by getting too personal with you, like moving too close or touching you without a warning. Things like that."  
  
Morty hadn't really wanted anyone to know. Honestly, he hadn't even wanted P-78 to know about this, much less anyone else.  
However, he couldn't stay upset at his new Rick because he understood that the other only did it to help and protect him.  
He just wanted to make sure that he wouldn't feel uncomfortable around Q-89 who was probably a bit more handsy with other Mortys even if it was in non-sexual ways.  
Again, Morty gave a nod of understanding.  
  
"I want you to know that I'm not like your old Rick. I would never do something like that to you, so please don't be scared of me now, okay?"  
  
"I-I get it."  
  
There was a brief silence between the two before the brunet opened his mouth again to continue their conversation.  
  
"Y-you se-said before that y-you-you're sleeping with M-Mortys. Wh-why d-do y do that? A-an-and why do the M-Mortys do th-that?"  
  
"Well, as I've told you before, the Mortys who come to me are the ones that fell in love with their Ricks, but whose Ricks don't love them back in the same way. They do it to relieve some sexual tension and probably to imagine that it is their own Rick who is doing this with them. And for me… well, in a way it's the same reason I guess…" Rick rubbed the back of his head in slight embarrassment.  
  
The man honestly still wasn't quite so sure himself why he did that.  
  
"O-okay. B-but I still d-don't get why…" Morty made some motions with his hands, clearly too shy to even say the word 'sex'.  
  
Rick took a while to understand what exactly Morty was asking him before he thought that he finally understood the issue. "Why have sex, you mean? Well, because it feels good." He smiled gently at the boy's innocence on the topic.  
  
"I-It does?" Morty asked with a blush.  
  
Well, it probably made sense, the boy told himself. That's what people always said about it anyways, right? That's why people wanted to do it so badly.  
However, the only experiences that he had with intercourse – namely his grandfather using him for it – had only been painful and unpleasant. So, he was still having a hard time to associate anything other than that with it.  
  
As if he was reading the boy's thoughts again, Q-89 said, "What your Rick has done to you back then was not sex, Morty. It has nothing to do with sex at all, okay?"  
  
He almost felt like a hypocrite for saying this, but it was true and he needed the boy to understand that.  
Morty gave him a very reluctant nod.  
  
Rick sighed at that and mumbled still loud enough to be heard by the brunet, "Well, I could offer to show you, but I'm sure you wouldn't want that."  
  
There was a stretch of silence before Morty answered in a small voice, "O-okay."  
  
"Wait, what?" Rick was more than just surprised by that reply.  
  
Honestly, he hadn't thought about doing that sort of thing with a Morty today, especially not with A-22β6. They were only supposed to talk and he hadn't doubted that it would stay that way.  
It wasn't really like this Morty to make a bold decision like that. Even if he didn't know the boy that closely, he was sure that he knew him good enough to be able to state that.  
  
"Are-are you really sure about that?" The scientist had to ask.  
  
Morty had made up his mind. That didn't mean that he wasn't frightened by the prospect of what he would let the other Rick do to him.  
However, Q-89 was nice. He still thought so after what he had been revealed about him and his Morty's past. And if other Mortys came to him for this and always came back for more then maybe he should give it a try.  
At least this Rick had experience with Mortys so maybe it wouldn't be so bad…?  
  
"I-I think, I wo-won't be a-able t-to understand this o-otherwise…" he tried to explain himself.  
  
Rick only looked him in the eyes for a while, searching in those hazel-brown orbs if the boy was really okay with this. Seeing that the boy was terrified but still unwavering in his decision finally convinced him.  
  
"Okay. We can do this, but you have to tell me when you want to stop, okay?"  
  
Morty nodded again but Rick still wanted to make sure that it got through to the boy. "You absolutely have to tell me, no matter at which point. Don't be too scared to speak up. I won't get angry. Do you understand that?"  
  
"Y-yes, Rick." The brunet answered verbally now.  
  
"Okay. I'll be really slow and gentle with you." Rick reassured him.  
  
Morty smiled at him even though it looked a bit shaky.  
Obviously, it was going to take a lot more than just a few comforting words to calm his nerves.  
Of course, Rick knew that and he was prepared to treat this specific Morty with greater care than any other Morty he had before.  
  
'This is it now.' A-22β6 thought to himself.  
  
Maybe this would finally help him find an answer. If he did this with Rick Q-89, he finally might be able to clear up the confusion that was inside his mind.  
In his head, he was still fighting a war over the things that he had believed about himself for such a long time and about the possibilities what could actually be true. For all he knew, he was the one that had brought upon himself what his original grandfather had done to him. Maybe he had provoked him and unconsciously asked for it. He had probably wanted something like this to happen all along.  
This would ultimately prove to himself if he was one of _those_ Mortys or not.  
  
  
Gently Rick guided the boy to lie down on the cot yet he didn't move on top of him but rather laid on his side next to him. He did this to seem less intimidating to the smaller and to not make him feel like he had no control over the situation.  
He was sure if the boy would feel dominated by him, he would be too frightened to speak up when he was uncomfortable or wanted to stop. Like this, he still would have a certain sense of freedom to move away or stop Rick at any given time.  
  
Morty tried to relax on the slightly hard bolster as best as he could. However, he couldn't help but tense up again as Q-89 put a hand on his arm.  
  
  
This was odd. If he really wanted this then why was he so scared of it? Aside from that, the other hadn't even done anything to him yet. And it wasn't like this was something that he hadn't done before…  
  
  
Rick only let his hand rest there, not moving it or adding any pressure. Of course, he had noticed how the boy had stiffened up at his touch.  
He was carefully reading the other and as he had said, he would take things however slow Morty needed him to be.  
  
Morty felt very grateful as he noticed again how patient Q-89 was with him.  
This knowledge coupled with the realization that Rick would really stick true to his words helped the boy's muscle to slowly turn slack again.  
  
  
Rick Q-89 wouldn't be mean about this. He was a nice guy.  
And no matter what happened, he said that he would be gentle, said he wouldn't hurt him…  
  
  
As the limb lazy started to move up and down his arm, the touch still light as a feather, Morty was glad that he had practice getting used to physical touch with P-78 before.  
Maybe if he hadn't he would be freaking out more now. As it was, he actually took it very well.  
  
Rick continued the slow and soft ministrations for a long while only feeling up the boy with clothes still between them but avoiding the more sensitive spots yet.  
Seeing how well the boy accepted it all, he dared to ask if they should proceed further.  
  
"Morty? Are you okay with taking your shirt off?"  
  
Briefly, he chewed nervously on his lower lip and his fingers twisted into the hem of said garment before Morty mentally scolded himself and released both things again.  
He had decided to trust this Rick and since nothing bad had happened yet he had no reason to doubt him.  
  
"S-sure." Morty sat up to help with taking the yellow garment off.  
  
As his scarred skin was revealed to Rick's eyes, the older felt the urge to kiss each one of them apologetically but held back. It really made him upset to see what an alternate version of himself had done to this precious grandson. Especially the words that were carved on the boy's lower back made him feel angry and if that Rick hadn't been already dead he might have personally sought him out to end the psychotic bastard.  
  
As Morty laid down again, Rick retraced the paths that he made earlier on the young, vulnerable body, still watching Morty and all of his reactions carefully.  
The boy shuddered at the direct contact but otherwise still seemed to be doing fine. He didn't ask Rick to stop or looked especially uncomfortable.  
At the moment, the scientist was still careful to avoid the more erogenous spots like his nipples and privates.  
  
"Can I kiss you, Morty?" he asked, still trying to be slow but also wanting to move things along at the same time.  
  
A cute blush was dusting the boy's cheeks at the request. He nodded nonetheless.  
His eyes turned half-lidded as Rick's face came closer to his.  
Despite Morty's expectations, the other didn't kiss him on the lips though but placed a soft little peck at the corner of his mouth.  
  
Rick continued to pepper light kisses on the boy's cheeks, nose, forehead and eyelids even. Morty squirmed slightly as he received these affections, but his giggling signaled very clearly that he didn't mind it.  
Rick stopped again and both stared into each other's eyes before he lowered his head once more and connected their lips.  
  
The contact was innocent and simple, just pressing together with no force or pressure behind it. It intensified the slightest bit when Rick began to move his lips.

Shyly Morty mirrored the action.  
  
This was his first kiss and he had to admit to himself that it actually felt really nice.  
  
After a few minutes of this closemouthed-ness, Rick decided once more to step it up a notch and licked with his tongue over Morty's lips to silently beg for entrance.  
The boy was surprised at the bold move and didn't react immediately as the wet appendage continued to slither against him.  
  
Eventually his lips fell open a bit and Rick quickly slipped through the gap.  
Morty made a noise in the back of his throat as the elder mapped out the inside of his mouth. The hot and moist appendage stroked against the roof of his mouth and over his teeth and gums before it gently nudged against Morty's tongue.  
  
Again, the boy wasn't sure what to do but he eventually began to shyly move his tongue against Rick's. His older lover knew how to teach him, entwining their tongues and suckling on it before he drew it into his own mouth.  
They continued to French kiss for a few minutes before Rick drew back and mouthed his way to Morty's ear.  
  
He sucked at the earlobe, gently nipped on it and licked over the cartilage.  
The brunet's moans weren't exactly quiet as Rick finally began to pay attention to the more sensitive spots of his body.  
While his mouth began to trail down Morty's neck, Rick's hands inched closer towards the boy's nipples to also play with them.  
  
Morty keened from the new stimulation, especially when his grandfather began to caress scarred tissue with his lips.  
However, he gasped and got nervous again after Rick's fingers went past his navel and closer to his pants.  
Unconsciously, fear started to settle into the boy again even though he knew there was no reason for it.  
  
"You okay, Morty?" Rick asked and didn't dare to wander lower.  
  
Of course, he had noticed the change in the boy.  
  
"I-I-I'm sorry. I'm f-fine, r-really." Morty assured while feeling stupid for freaking out over nothing.  
  
Rick stalled until he noticed that the boy had calmed down again before he spoke up once more. "Would you be okay with me taking your pants off?"  
  
Morty's nerves fluttered at the question and again he went back to fidgeting and avoiding eye contact with the other.  
Honestly, he wasn't sure if he was ready for that step yet.  
  
"Do you want me to take my clothes off first?" Rick changed his question.  
  
After all, he was still fully clad while the boy was already half-naked. Maybe the little one would feel a bit more comfortable when he wasn't the only one in a state of undress.  
  
Morty dared to look Rick in the eyes again and nodded.  
Wordlessly the scientist stood up from the cot and began to strip off his clothes, starting with his sleeveless lab coat.  
The entire time Morty was watching with big eyes as article after article of clothing was discarded and landed carelessly on the floor.  
  
Rick didn't stop until he was completely nude (aside from the yellow cloth that was tied around his arm) and the brunet noticed that the sight was nothing new for him.  
Q-89 looked exactly as his grandfather had looked. The same ashen, saggy skin dotted with faint scars in the same exact spots that Morty could remember. Same wrinkles and same fine scatter of grey-blue hair.  
The boy wasn't sure if he was disappointed that there was not a single difference or if he was glad about it.  
  
Rick climbed back on the cot and again laid down next to Morty, still wanting to make sure to not overwhelm him with too much body contact at once.  
Surprisingly Morty was the one who made the first move now.  
He placed a trembling hand on Rick's chest and stroked up and down.  
  
"You don't have to do that if you don't want to." Rick put his hand over Morty's, which was still quivering. "After all, this is about you. Not me."  
  
"I-I-I'm okay wi-with y-you taking o-off m-my pa-pants now." The boy whispered.  
  
Truthfully, he didn't sound as if he really was and Rick scanned his face critically.  
  
"Are you really sure, Morty?"  
  
"Pl-please, Rick!"  
  
While it was true that he wasn't as brave as he tried to act in front of the other, Morty was getting a little tired over the lack of progress.  
Of course, it was nice that Rick was this patient with him and so considerate, but he began to feel like they were going to go nowhere with this pace.  
He started to think that he would lose his nerves and chicken out if they didn't speed this up. Maybe it was wrong trying to approach this like quickly ripping a band-aid off, but Morty just wanted to get this over with.  
  
Rick sat up and sighed, seeing that the boy was maybe trying to bite off more than he could chew with his request. "You don't have to force yourself, Morty. We can always stop this and try again some other time if you want that."  
  
"N-NO!" the brunet suddenly began to shout. "I-I-I want this! A-and I want i-it now!"  
  
Rick could do little against the boy's determination so he slowly opened Morty's pants.  
Of course, he would still stop when it became too much for the alternate version of his grandson.  
  
"Th-the underwear, t-too." Morty added as Rick went to pull down his jeans, his voice sounding much smaller all of a sudden.  
  
Again, Rick looked intensely at the boy's face, but didn't stop or ask again and followed the prompt.  
In quick movements, they were both equally naked now.  
  
As the elder settled back down again he could hear that Morty's breath had sped up and turned heavy. "You still okay, Morty?"  
  
He didn't care how often he was repeating himself, he would ask the boy as often as he thought was necessary.  
  
"Y-yeah. C-ca-can we ju-just start, please?"  
  
"My, you're suddenly eager." Rick chuckled in good humor to try and lighten the mood a little.  
  
He reached over to the small table next to the cot and retrieved a tube of lubricant.  
  
At Morty's visible confusion, he explained, "Even if you wanna cut this short, I'm still gonna prepare you first. There's no way that I'm going to take you dry."  
  
This was new for Morty and he blinked, still trying to process what Rick meant with 'preparing him', but he didn't protest.  
  
Even though Rick had really wanted to take his time with the boy and let them explore each other some more first, he would not deny Morty this.  
So, he dipped his fingers in the clear gel and moved it between the boy's legs, past the half-hard erection and didn't let Morty's face out of his sight for even a second.  
  
Morty's breath hitched at the first contact of a slicked finger against his entrance.  
Clenching his eyes shut as painful memories were resurfacing, he whimpered pitifully.  
  
  
Suddenly he found himself back in the underground lab. Hollow neon lights that came from on one side of the wall were casting eerie shadows, small beeping sounds from machines whose functions he didn't know were echoing inside his ear and a cold hard table was underneath him.  
The same uncomfortable, metallic material was strapped around his wrists and ankles – clamping down on him hard enough that it was painful and the slightest movement would chafe his skin off. And above him was Rick's face. A manic glint in his eyes and a cruel smile adorning his features.  
  
  
"Morty, look at me." Rick said to bring the boy back.  
  
He could tell that Morty was sinking into the bad memories from his past.  
  
Morty opened his eyes and the scary face, which could only be described as pure evil was replaced by a soft gaze full of worry.  
  
As the boy looked at him again, Rick added, "Don't shut me out. Just keep looking at me, okay?"  
  
Morty swallowed heavily. He wasn't sure if he could do that, but he also understood that Rick only wanted to help and prevent him from getting stuck in the nightmarish thoughts about his original Rick.  
  
Since he had the boy's attention on him again, Rick let his finger circle around the pucker, only adding the slightest bit of pressure.  
Feeling the resistance lessen he eventually pushed the single digit in.  
  
Morty whimpered and immediately tightened up and Rick held his hand still again.  
It didn't exactly hurt and it certainly wasn't how he remembered it, but the feeling was still very weird.  
  
"Ssh, ssh, ssh. It's okay, Morty." Rick tried to calm him down again.  
  
He didn't dare to move even a millimeter until the boy's body had relaxed again.  
Once Morty's muscles had turned lax, Rick resumed what he had been doing.  
Carefully he began to move his finger around inside the tight heat, slowly stretching it out and getting it ready for something bigger.  
  
He didn't take his eyes off of Morty the entire time and the boy tried to hold his gaze but occasionally would still close his eyes so Rick would need to remind him again to focus on him, preventing the brunet from drifting off into unwanted recollections.  
  
As he deemed Morty well-adjusted enough, he pulled his finger free again to coat it in more lube before he brought it back down and moved a bit more insistently with two digits against the opening.  
  
After the breach, Morty clamp down on him once more and again Rick tried to shush him.  
He gently nuzzled against Morty's face and peppered feather light kisses on him as a diversion.  
  
Rick's cooing and the gentle ministrations helped Morty quickly relax again.  
He was really grateful that the other tried to make this as pleasant for him as possible. And up to now it wasn't actually that bad, he decided.  
It was really like nothing that he remembered.  
  
With all the care in the world, Rick widened him using a scissoring motion to open the boy up more.  
Again, he took his sweet time and only after he was absolutely sure that Morty was ready for more did he remove his digits to add more lube to them.  
  
Three fingers still seemed to be a bit too much for the boy because he flinched and tensed up again as Rick reentered him, making a slightly pained face.  
Again, the elder tried to calm him down and used sweet words and soft kisses.  
  
"You're doing so good, Morty." He praised. "Taking it so well."  
  
"Hnng, R-Rick…" Morty whimpered.  
  
The brunet tried to force his body to relax again. After all, it was only Rick's fingers now and not even…  
He mentally scolded himself for acting as he did. It was really a surprise that the other was putting up with him.  
  
"Keep focusing on me, Morty." Rick reminded him again.  
  
The boy hadn't even noticed that he had closed his eyes again.  
After opening them and looking back at the scientist's smiling face again, he was finally able to un-tense his muscles again so that they could continue.  
  
They kept holding eye contact as Rick prepared his little lover for what was to come, all the while whispering sweet nothings.  
Sooner than Morty would have expected, Rick withdrew from him again and sat up.  
  
"Do you think you're ready for this, Morty?" Rick asked with a serious expression.  
  
This was it. His answer would decide what would happen now.  
If he said 'no' then they would stop and Q-89 would bring him back home. And if he said 'yes' they would…  
  
Morty swallowed heavily as he looked down Rick's body.  
Even if he was still scared, he wanted to do this—he needed to do this.  
If he backed out of this now, he would forever wonder about this missed chance.  
  
"Y-yes. I-I-I'm sure a-about this, R-Rick." He answered with a firm nod.  
  
Rick also nodded. "Okay."  
  
Then he grabbed the tube with the lubricant again and lubed his erection up while Morty silently watch him.  
He inhaled deeply as the other was done with the task and put the container back on the little table again.  
  
What happened next surprised Morty though.  
Instead of getting on top of him as he had expected, Rick laid down on his back next to him.  
  
At the boy's confused expression, Rick explained, "It's easier when you're on top. That way you can decide how fast or deep you want to go and also when to stop."  
  
While it certainly made sense to the brunet, Morty still found it a bit weird.  
Nonetheless, he sat up and crawled reluctantly on top of the other.  
Rick assisted by holding his hard member upright with one hand at the base, but otherwise kept his hands off of Morty to not make him feel pressured.  
  
Awkwardly, Morty tried to guide the head inside him, having to use one of his hands because the slippery head would miss its mark and only slide either up his crack or against his balls.  
He gasped as the tip finally entered him and let go of Rick's hard-on again.  
  
His inexperience further showed through, as he nervously looked around not sure where to place his hands.  
Rick helped him with this as he led the boy's hands to rest on his solid chest.  
Taking another deep breath, Morty slowly began to lower himself.  
  
However, Rick quickly interrupted him. "Hold on a second, Morty."  
  
Slowly as not to startle the boy, he placed his hands on the slim hips and corrected his posture. "Hold yourself like this. Makes the entry easier."  
  
"O-o-okay." Morty blushed heavily.  
  
He was embarrassed that the other had to constantly help him like this. Even though Rick didn't seem to mind if his friendly gaze was anything to go by.  
Making sure to keep the stance that he was shown, he began to gradually lower himself on the hard flesh, a look of deep concentration on his face.  
  
He had to take a few stops, but eventually sat completely down on the other's lap. Taking another pause to properly adjust to the feeling of something this big stretching his insides, he breathed deeply.  
Being filled like this was still weird, but Morty had to admit that it wasn't exactly bad. It certainly was nothing like how he remembered the times with his original Rick – nowhere near close to that.  
  
Even if Rick was as patient as ever and gave him all the time in the world, the boy grew eventually restless and figured that he might be ready for more. Experimentally he shifted his hips and gasped. It had actually felt…good.  
As if to test it out, he moved a little again to get the same result.  
  
Deciding that he definitely liked the sensation and wanting more of it, Morty began to slowly lift himself up only to drop down again. He emitted soft moans and little mewling sounds as he kept going.  
Rick supported him in his movements but still held back and let the boy be in complete control. Albeit he moved still a bit clumsily, Morty found a somewhat steady rhythm that he felt comfortable with.  
  
As he was riding the elder and looked at him, he didn't see the Rick that always looked down at him with a malevolent smile and that he was frightened of. He also didn't see the Rick with the unusual glowing blue eye that would sometimes smile at him gently and that he learned to trust.  
What he saw was a Rick that dearly cared for him but loved the grandson that he had lost – he saw Rick Q-89.  
  
  
The two continued their actions, both moaning and groaning softly as they did. Becoming bolder, Rick had started to let his hands wander over the boy's body, teasing his sides and nipples, which was rewarded with more and louder beautiful sounds.  
Eventually, Morty began to slow down though.  
  
Rick was about to ask if he was tired just as the boy stopped moving, but then the little one began to circle his hips.  
Both lovers groaned loudly because it felt amazing and he kept up the motion.  
  
However, Morty did eventually tire himself out and had to stop again. Panting, he laid down on top of Rick, feeling the other's hot and sweaty skin against his own.  
A hand gently stroked up and down over his back before Rick spoke up.  
  
"Wore yourself out, Morty?"  
  
The answer was obvious but the boy nodded still. "Y-yeah."  
  
"Do you want me to take over now?"  
  
His heartrate began to pick up, but Morty nodded again. "Ye-yes. Plu-please, Rick."  
  
This confirmation was all that Rick had needed, so he rolled the boy over, switching their positions without breaking the connection and as soon as he was on top, he began to move again.  
At first, he was still slow, alternating between shallow thrusts and light rolls of his hips. The rhythm soon sped up a little, but Rick still kept it slow and easy.  
  
"Hah… hng… fa- pl-please faster, Rick." Morty began to beg in between his moans.  
  
Not one to deny his lover what he wanted, Rick sped up again.  
The boy however continued to ask for more and faster and harder and the elder followed every one of his wishes.  
He was alternating between quick and then slow and hard thrusts, efficiently driving Morty crazy with it.  
  
When the brunet wrapped his arms around Rick's neck and pulled him down, Rick kissed him deeply and stopped his thrusting. He buried himself as deeply in Morty as he could and only moved his hips in a circular motion, constantly teasing and brushing against Morty's prostrate now.  
  
The boy was getting so close, he needed just a little something more to reach his orgasm.  
As if he was reading Morty's thoughts, Rick chose that moment to quickly pull out and thrust in again, ramming right into the boy's sweetspot and making him cum.  
Morty ripped his mouth free and screamed blissfully as he finally reached his sweet release.  
  
Feeling the boy cum – the hot, sticky wetness splashing between their bodies and the tight heat clenching even tighter around him – triggered Rick's orgasm and he dove in for another deep kiss as he filled Morty with his essence.  
  
They kept lazily making out for a while before Rick separated from him again and departed from the heavenly body to roll onto his side.  
Morty followed the movement and snuggled up against the other, feeling a lot more comfortable with the physical contact now after what they had just done.  
  
"You-you're a real nice R-Rick." Morty commented.  
  
"Thank you, Morty." Rick laughed a little. "But you know, your Rick – P-78 is also a very nice Rick. Even if he doesn't always show it so openly."  
  
The boy nodded. "I-I know."  
  
He really did and Q-89 didn't needed to explain to him that his Rick wasn't quite as open because he still needed some time to learn to trust him.


	8. The Rick that he belongs to

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is actually more of an epilogue than a real chapter 'cause it's really short. I still hope that you like it ^_^

** Second Chances AKA The Rick One For Me – Chapter 8: The Rick that he belongs to **

  
  
  
As his Morty stepped through the portal, Rick P-78 instantly knew that they hadn't just talked.  
The scent of sex was still clinging to the boy.  
Rick gritted his teeth, but chose not to comment on it.  
  
After all, he was the one who had come up with the idea and sent Morty to see Rick Q-89. It was too late to regret that decision now.  
If he hadn't wanted Morty to turn out this way, he should have shielded the boy from this whole thing from the moment on that they had seen this couple on the Citadel of Ricks.  
Instead, he had indulged in the boy's curiosity and it ended up like this.  
He had told himself that it was for the best, so he couldn't hold this against Morty now. The only one he had to blame for this was himself.  
  
As things stood now, the boy would surely realize soon that Rick Q-89 was the better choice. The other didn't have a Morty of his own and those two were good for each other – better than P-78 was with the boy.  
However, Rick couldn't help but really like this Morty. He had the feeling that they could become a lot closer with each other because of their pasts, which were so similar.  
  
This was only a dream though.  
It won't take long now before Morty will ask him to become Q-89's new Morty and Rick would have to start all over again. Man up and bring himself to request another Morty from the Reassignment Center or the Morty Academy again and then try to grow accustomed to having a different boy around who still looked like (and technically was) his grandson.  
  
"Brought him back to you safe and sound, P-78." The other Rick proclaimed with a wide grin.  
  
"Yeah, I—urp—I can see that." P-78 replied unenthusiastically.  
  
He completely ignored the project that he had been working on without any progress in the hours that Morty was gone and turned completely around in his chair to face the duo. The only thing that he did successfully managed to do in the boy's absence was empty a few more bottles, yet he wasn't drunk to the point of it making him incapacitated. There was still a part inside of him that fought against losing control enough to potentially turn himself vulnerable – even if he knew that Morty would never abuse that situation and do anything to him. He really wanted to trust the boy and was convinced that he didn't have to be worried around him, but it would probably take a long time until every fiber of himself had come to accept that.  
With how things might turn out now, it may never come to that though…  
  
"Well, I will be off then. My Beth should be home soon." Q-89 excused himself and waved as he went back towards the still open portal. "See ya, P-78! Bye, Morty!"  
  
"Um, tha-thanks again." P-78 shouted after him while his Morty waved at the retreating Rick.  
  
After all, the other had been nice enough to answer to his and his Morty's request. Just because he didn't like the results, there was no reason for him to be angry at Q-89 now.  
  
"Well, c'mon, Morty. I'm gonna start making dinner now. You-you can help." Rick proclaimed as he finally stood up.  
  
"Um, R-Rick? C-can we talk? A-about wh-what happened a-at Q-89's?"  
  
'Here it comes.' Rick thought grimly.  
  
He had hoped that the boy would take at least a little bit longer before throwing this at him.  
  
With a sigh, he replied. "Sure. If you-if you really want to get this off your chest."  
  
Morty looked relieved even though he could clearly tell that his grandfather was upset.  
  
"R-Rick Q-89 wa-was really n-nice t-to me, but we-we didn't o-only t-talk. I mean w-we d-did talk, but he—we a-also…um…d-did so-sum-something else…" The boy was blushing bright red as he tried to explain what had happened.  
  
Rick had already figured out as much and didn't really need a detailed explanation, but he didn't stop his grandson as he continued.  
  
"H-he was rea-really gen-gentle with m-me a-and so patient…"  
  
'Please spare me the details and just get to the point!' Rick begged on the inside.  
  
He really didn't want to hear the graphic description of what the other Rick had done with his boy. Besides, he already knew where Morty's little speech would end up.  
  
"A-anyways, wha-what I just wa-wanted to say with thi-this is tha-that I-I-I really like R-Rick Q-89." The boy concluded.  
  
P-78's posture visibly slouched, as he seemed to fall apart on the inside.  
For a moment, he wondered if he should just stop the boy. If Morty wouldn't say those words, everything could continue to stay the way it was now and nothing would have to change between them.  
Because he knew if the boy would ask about leaving him to be with Q-89, he wouldn't say no to him. Even if he did, there would always be a rift between them then that would never close again, no matter what they did.  
  
Seeing how upset his Rick was, Morty added, "I-I-I feel b-ba-bad for him be-because he do-doesn't ha-have a M-Morty. I-It's so sad tha-that he's a-all alone…"  
  
"Morty…" P-78 started, not being able to bear hearing this any longer.  
  
However, the boy shook his head and continued. He needed to get this out!  
  
"E-even though the o-only R-Rick I e-ever wa-want t-to be with i-is you! I-I-I want y-you to be m-my Rick, P-78!"  
  
Rick was stunned. That wasn't what he had expected to hear. Not at all.  
His mouth stood still gaping open as Morty went to him with a big smile.  
The scientist tensed up as Morty got on his tiptoes and leaned towards his face. He expected the boy to try to kiss him and had no idea how he should react to that.  
Surprise hit him when his grandson actually only gave him a peck on his cheek, placing it right on his scar.  
  
Rick blinked and could only stare down at Morty who was smiling brightly at him.  
Before he even thought his actions fully through, he embraced the boy and gave him a soft kiss on his forehead.  
As the scientist continued to hold Morty, he noticed that his grandson's body was relaxed and not trembling.  
  
It was a good sign and encouraged Rick to continue holding his boy.  
They both felt content as they stood in the garage and just hugged each other.  
  
While they did that, Morty thought back to the conversation that he had with Q-89 after their…"activities".  
  
  
_"You-you're a real nice R-Rick." Morty commented._  
  
"Thank you, Morty." Rick laughed a little. "But you know, your Rick – P-78 is also a very nice Rick. Even if he doesn't always show it so openly."  
  
The boy nodded. "I-I know."  
  
_"I'm not sure how much he has told you about his previous Morty, but after what had happened back then, he was in a really bad place."_  
  
_Morty's curiosity was once again picked. "Ho-how did y-you meet him?"_  
  
_"I was actually called by a Doctor Rick who informed me that they couldn't safe his eye. They gave me his coordinates so I could make him an offer for a prosthetic eye. Tha-that Citadel Clinic usually makes their own prosthetics, but for some small high-tech gadgets like this, they always call me up…"_  
  
_Q-89 sighed a little as he recalled his first meeting with the one-eyed Rick._  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Rick Q-89 walked through the portal after he input the coordinates that he received from the medical staff of the Citadel Hospital and ended up in a garage that looked not very much unlike his own at home.  
  
"Hey. Hello. You must be Rick P-78. I'm Rick Q-89 and was sent from Doctor Rick B-2207." He greeted politely the man who was laying slumped over his workbench.  
  
The other scientist mumbled something incoherent and weakly lifted his face off the hard surface.  
Q-89 fought against making a grimace as he took in his opposite's appearance.  
  
His head was wrapped in bandages, which covered the entire left side of his face. One singular, half-lidded eye stared unfocused in his direction and was completely bloodshot. Drool was trailing down his chapped lips and some of it also stained the front of the black turtleneck shirt and the equally black pants – at least Q-89 assumed (and hoped) that that was what it was as some spots of the material were darker and obviously wet.  
  
"Wha-whaddaya wond?" P-78 slurred heavily.  
  
It didn't take a genius to realize that this Rick was completely wasted.  
  
"I was told that you're in need for a new eye so I came here to talk to you about that and make you an offer for a cybernetic prosthetic."  
  
"Jus-jush leave me da fuck alone. I don wanna-wan a new eye, I jus wanna die…"  
  
Q-89 sighed and smiled sadly. These drunken ramblings felt like a déjà vu. It wasn't so long ago that he was in the same place – drunk out of his mind and just wanting for it all to end.  
Slowly he approached the other Rick whose head fell back on the top of his workbench again.  
  
"You wanna tell me what happened?" he asked, knowing from experience that it did help a little talking about your problems.  
  
P-78 didn't try to lift his head up again, but turned it so that he could fix his single eye on him. "Why shoulda tell ya? I dun ev'n know wh-who ya ar—"  
  
"Oh, you want me to talk about myself first? Okay then."  
  
Rick Q-89 began to tell his full story. Even if the subject about his Morty was a sore spot for him, he figured if he shared something this personal with the other, he might also be able to open up more to him. Although there was a chance that he was one of those disapproving Ricks and might end up kicking him out instead…  
  
  
"Wow, thaz jush shick!" P-78 mumbled, as his counterpart was finished. "Fus-fucking Mortys ish jush grosh-URP-gross and w-wrong! Bu-but kil-killin dem is, too.Tha-daz wha I did."  
  
The one-eyed Rick emitted a miserable wail after he said that and hid his face in his arms.  
Q-89 could absolutely relate to how the other felt right now – after all he had lost his own Morty – and from this Rick's upset behavior, he could easily tell that he didn't kill his grandson on purpose.  
  
It took quite a bit of consoling and persuading before he could finally coax more details about what had happened out of the other. And after loosening his lips, P-78 had spilled absolutely everything including all his self-loathing and how much he blamed himself for what had happened.  
  
While this revelation was quite shocking, Q-89 tried to not react too strongly to it. After all the other was pretty drunk right now and even the smallest things could trigger an unforeseen and most often violent reaction from a drunk Rick.  
That's why he tried to keep his posture neutral even if it wasn't easy.  
  
"Whaddaya-wha m I s'posed toddoo naw?"  
  
"Well, first we should get you a new eye. And then you could…maybe…get a new Morty from the reassignment center." Q-89 said calmly.  
  
"Gedda-gedda new M-Morty? Why wudda-wud I wanna get 'nother psy—liddle psycho?" the drunk Rick sounded offended at the suggestion.  
  
Rick Q-89 sighed and smiled sadly. "Hey now, it's not like they all are like that. Some of them may have a thing against Ricks, but what yours did was really an exception."  
  
While it was not completely unheard of that there were Mortys who turned on their Ricks and killed them, they were still pretty rare. And killing the entire family like P-78's Morty had done, was something completely out of the norm. He was sure that something like that certainly hadn't happened before. If anything, it were Ricks who ended up doing that sort of crazy shit…  
  
"I can understand that you might not want to get a new one yet. Heck, I probably sound like a hypocrite to you because some other Rick had also told me to just get a new one and I still can't bring myself to do that. But you should at least give it a thought…" Q-89 admitted.  
  
It wasn't like he couldn't understand the other – he understood him all too well actually – but he was sure that with his entire family gone, he would surely grow lonely and slowly insane.  
He still had his Beth left at least even if that wasn't much considering how "well" their interactions with each other went. The Mortys who came to visit him where probably the only thing keeping him somewhat sane at this point.  
  
"No, n-no, I dun wanna. N'ver." P-78 protested vehemently and lifted his head to shake it.  
  
An action that he immediately regretted as he groaned in pain a moment later and then bent over to violently heave.  
  
Q-89 looked around and grabbed a plastic bin that he brought over to the other who quickly took it and continued to retch into it. While P-78 vomited everything that he had inside his body into the container, Q-89 busied himself with looking around the garage, trying to figure out what this Rick's specialty was.  
His interested was caught by some batteries, which looked like they were not normal batteries even if their outer appearance looked no different from the standard.  
  
He stopped looking the little devices over after he noticed that it had gotten silent. Looked like the other was finally done.  
P-78 was still hunched over and gasped for breath, but didn't look like he would throw up immediately again. However, he looked pretty pale and anything but healthy – not that he had looked any better before that.  
  
"Feeling better?" Q-89 asked, as he walked over to him again.  
  
P-78 wiped some vomit that still clung to his lower lip before he answered. "I still feel like sshit."  
  
While he was obviously still slurring, he seemed to be on his way of slowly sobering up a little.  
  
"Why-why the fuk you're here again?"  
  
Q-89 was okay with the change of topic. This was what he had come for after all. So, he finally steered the conversation to talking about the prosthetic eye.  
He wanted to clear up with P-78 what kind of features he wanted for it, offering some of the functions that would be possible. Q-89 even mentioned that he should feel lucky to have lost his eye because the one he would build for him would be so much better than his biological human eye could ever be.  
  
He could add night vision and infrared vision to it. Also, a nice zooming function so he wouldn't have to rely on a gunsight for sniping or could go without a field glass when spying. Or, maybe a recording function with the option to later transfer the videos and snapshots on his computer.  
Q-89 could make P-78's mobile phone obsolete if he so wanted. If there was anyone, who could fit a high-performance computer into such a little gadget it was him.  
  
"If you want you could also play videogames with it. I can make it VR-ready, but you'd have to close your other eye or wear an eyepatch or something like that."  
  
They talked about the possible features and what P-78 actually wanted for the rest of the evening…  
  


* * *

  
  
  
_"I've been visiting him a few times after that – officially to check on how the prosthetic was doing. He actually managed to pull himself together again, but it was obvious that he wasn't doing all that great. Loneliness can be very cruel, especially if you're stuck with no one else but your own thoughts, but every time he still insisted that he won't to get another Morty. So imagine my surprise when he finally decided to pick you up."_  
  
_Q-89 looked down with a smile at Morty and noticed that the boy was hanging onto his every word._  
  
_"It was a really big step for P-78." Rick continued. "And he made so many preparations for your arrival. However, I know that you are good for him. And while it may not look like it to you, believe me when I tell you that he's trying really hard. For you. And for himself. For both of you."_  
  
_"I-I-I get it." Morty said and then he giggled softly._  
  
_"What? What is it?" Rick asked back with a grin, wanting to be let in on the joke._  
  
_"You-you're not ju-just a-a-a very n-nice guy, but al-also a v-very good fr-friend."_  
  
_The other also laughed a little now. "You think so? I wonder if he sees it like that, too."_  
  
_"I'm s-sure he does."_  
  
  
Morty sighed a little as his thoughts returned to the present time, but he still refused to break up their peaceful and sweet moment. However, something else interrupted them not soon after.  
It was Rick's mobile phone, which had suddenly began to ring.  
Reluctantly and feeling disappointed, they let go of each other so that the scientist could answer the call.  
  
As P-78 was busy talking, Morty wondered whom he was speaking to and what this was about.  
  
So, as soon as Rick had hung up, he asked. "W-was it R-Rick Q-89?"  
  
"No, it was another acquaintance of mine – Rick C-133 and he needs some backup." Rick explained, as he got ready to leave. "So, we're going to the Citadel of Ricks now to help him out."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you see what I did there? For those of you who haven't read my other fanfiction ["Mortyfied and Rickfused"](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14889341/chapters/34482638) or don't remember Rick and Morty C-133 from it: there will be a continuation! (obviously also including P-78 and A-22β6 now and maybe a few other characters…)  
> In fact, my muse has really big plans now, but before we can come to the main event, we need to make more preparations and backstory first. At any rate, I'm really excited about what's going to come and I hope you'll like it, too.
> 
> BTW, while it's totally unrelated to this story, I feel the need to make some advertisement for my upcoming Ricktober Challenge.  
>  If you want to participate (or just know more about it) you can find the rules, prompts and all the details right [here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15865575). I would be delighted if some of you guys would also like to join in :)


End file.
